Programs & Services > Leadership Education > VACP High Performance Leadership Academy
VACP High Performance Leadership Academy
Equipping Public Safety Leaders With Practical Leadership Skills
The VACP High Performance Leadership Academy (HPLA) is a virtual 10-week, 3-course mentorship based program with content provided by industry leading executives. This program provides best practices in leadership, organizational development and change management, negotiation and collaboration, effective business communication, and delivering value within high performance management.
The VACP HPLA training, led by our partners at the Professional Development Academy, is intentionally designed to make existing leaders better and emerging leaders ready to address the pressing issues of our day. Anyone can participate! HPLA is designed for leaders at any level — particularly those who manage teams.
HPLA-trained leaders share the value and benefits received from the academy’s five pillars of leadership focus:
Lead, Organize, Collaborate, Communicate & Deliver.
Why High Performance Leadership Academy?
Most online and webinar-based distance learning programs emphasize solo learning. HPLA is different. HPLA is purpose-built around peer-to-peer interactivity, engagement, and community, while retaining the convenience of self-paced learning that busy professionals need today.
Additionally, the HPLA is guided by an expert leadership coach who helps keep participants on track and aligned to convert lessons from learning into practice for value. Accompanying the leadership coach is a world-class faculty of prominent public, private, and academic sector leaders who deliver engaging and thought-provoking video vignettes of their experience.
One of the many leaders providing such guidance is the late General Colin Powell who had this to say of the HPLA program: “This is a transformational leadership program that has proven to be the most scalable, cost effective and efficient way to make your leaders better.”
A Robust Curriculum Developed In Partnership With Fortune 1000 Executives, Public Sector Leaders, World-Renowned Academics And Thought Leaders
World-class faculty of prominent public, private, and university sector leaders deliver each course with all module content guided by an expert moderator to keep participants on track.
✔ Done From Your Desk
100% online course delivery allows participants to continue working while learning. Time commitment is 20-30 minutes per day / 4-6 hours per week.
✔ Cohort Model
Participants progress through the academy with peers who share similar experiences.
✔ Cost-Effective
Enrollment in the VACP HPLA is being offered at a discount off the retail price of $3,000 per person!
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Enroll 1 person per contract for $1500;
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Enroll 5 people per contract for $5000 ($1,000 per person);
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Enroll 10 people per contract for $10,000 ($1,000 per person), plus get one (1) FREE.
High Performance Leadership Academy has been designed with the busy professional in mind. The program has been built to accommodate busy work schedules with self-paced learning and conveniently scheduled peer-to-peer learning activities. The 10-week program includes three courses on leadership; with each course broken down into weekly modules of lessons. Each module includes about 3 hours of work that can be complete at the convenience of each participant followed by a 1 hour peer-to-peer breakout group meeting to further discuss key takeaways, and then followed by a 1-hour live event (webinar) at the end of each week to capstone the learning from that module and prepare for the next one. In total, each module/week of activity will take about 5 hours, or one hour each day.
How it works each week:
- Monday–Wednesday: Short self-paced leadership lessons (about 35–40 minutes per day)
- Thursday: Small-group breakout discussions with peers from across Virginia and across the country
- Friday: Live webinar with nationally recognized leadership experts
In addition to videos, reading, assessments, online posts, and personal reflection, participants are placed in a small group cohort where they’ll build their network of peer leaders, receive support from peers facing similar challenges, and opportunities and celebrate successes.
High Performance Leadership Academy -- 10-week program with 1 break week (click date to view specific cohort schedule)
| Cohort #1 | Cohort #2 | Cohort #3 | Cohort #4 | |
| 2026 | -- | 4/13/2026 | 7/13/2026 | 10/5/2026 |
| 2027 (est. dates) | 1/4/2027 | 4/12/2027 | 7/12/2027 | 10/4/2027 |
Course 1: Leadership Mindset & Positive Engagement
This course provides insights from members of the program’s National Leadership Board on the ways leaders shift their mindset from being excellent individual contributors to becoming highly effective leaders. The course also focuses on increasing empowerment and engagement to achieve individual, team and enterprise success. The second half of this course demonstrates how leaders enable “positively deviant” performance and engender positive culture and communication.
- Week 1 — Module 1: Your Leadership Mindset
- Week 2 — Module 2: Your Potential as a Positive Leader
- Week 3 — Module 3: Positive Leadership and Your Team: Empowerment & Engagement
- Week 4 — Module 4: Leadership Rules and Your Oath
Course 2: Leading Effective Change
The emphasis of this course is to prepare participants to engage in change initiated by others and to drive effective change as an active change agent. This course illustrates three facets of organizational change, including planning, executing and sustaining successful change. A balance of theoretical and pragmatic insights allows participants to understand the strategic, financial or market-based reasons for change and drive toward breakthrough results.
- Week 5 — Module 1: The Process of Change: Planning
- Week 6 — Module 2: The Process of Change: Executing
- Week 7 — Module 3: The Process of Change: Sustaining
Course 3: Communication and Collaboration
Participants learn and practice the skills needed to improve the quality of interpersonal communication in a variety of contexts. Participants will learn how to effectively speak the language of business and convey information across diverse stakeholder groups, as well as break down silos between business divisions to drive better decision making. Each participant will understand effective communication as it relates to leading others, managing conflict, providing and receiving feedback, and negotiating with the Mutual Gains Approach.
- Week 8 — Module 1: Speaking the Language of Business
- Week 9 — Module 2: Mutual Gains Approach
- Week 10 — Module 3: It’s All About People
- Graduation