New York, N.Y. (September 15, 2025)—Guttman Community College and The Citizens Campaign announced a partnership to offer its students and staff the opportunity to be citizen leaders via training in no-blame, pragmatic problem-solving skills and local non-elected roles for bettering New York City.
The Citizens Campaign is a community of problem-solvers dedicated to restoring service, mutual respect and pragmatism to America’s political culture through its Citizen Service, a new, citizen-driven national public service based at colleges throughout the nation. It designed all aspects of the Leadership and No-Blame Problem Solving training, including toolkits for professors, online videos, and drop-down course notes. The training text is Citizen Power authored by Harry Pozycki and published by Rutgers University Press.
This citizen power training is being made available to students via campus groups’ online sites and to Guttman employees via the college’s human resources department. People who complete the 90-minute online training receive a college certificate in “Leadership and No-Blame Problem Solving.” The training will be highlighted over the next couple days at Guttman’s annual National Voter Registration and Constitution Days, which will be held on September 16 and September 17, respectively.
The online videos and accompanying Citizen Power manual teach about the decision-making levers of government and how to use them to directly participate in local government. The training is centered on a 10-step problem solving method developed by successful practitioners and offers accessible opportunities to put this knowledge to work in citizen leadership roles that do not require running for public office.
“We know our students and staff are committed to improving Manhattan, New York City, and the Nation as a whole. It is important that people have the opportunity to develop the skills and knowledge to better do so,” said Dr. Rosslyn Knight, vice president of strategy and chief of staff at Guttman. “Partnering with The Citizens Campaign and its’ Citizen Service to provide training in leadership and no-blame problem solving will empower our students and staff to be effective, active leaders contributing to the betterment of their neighborhoods, communities and our country. This training underscores Guttman’s strong commitment to civic engagement.”
“We are excited to partner with Guttman Community College, and add them to a group of our more than 60 pioneering college partners who are providing students, staff and the community at large with the opportunity to learn how to find and advance solutions that are based on evidence of success, cost-effective and benefit the city as a whole,” said Harry Pozycki, founder of The Citizens Campaign and its Citizen Service. This effort is designed to produce a new generation of public spirited leaders who are laser focused on results.”
About Guttman Community College and The Citizens Campaign
Stella and Charles Guttman Community College is CUNY’s first new community college in more than forty years. Reimagining what community college could be, Guttman opened its doors in Manhattan in August 2012 to create a research-based, innovative model focused on moving students efficiently toward graduation. Offering associate degree programs in a nurturing environment, the College provides holistic support and advising to ensure timely degree completion, and most graduates transfer to senior colleges. Guttman is federally designated as a Hispanic-serving institution and minority-serving institution with more than 90% of the student population identifying as Latine, Black/African American or Asian. WalletHub ranked Guttman the #1 community college in New York State for 2025, and Niche.com named Guttman the best community college in America in 2020 and the top community college in New York State in 2021.
