The evening of Aug. 12 was graduation night for the TRSA Executive Management Institute (EMI) Class of 2010 at the University of Maryland University College outside Washington, DC. For 11 men and women, their five year “odyssey” culminated in joy, hugs, laughs and tears as one unique experience ended and a new journey of professional friendship began on a stage in front of 75 fellow students and faculty. Their sense of camaraderie and bonding was shared by everyone in the room, especially the EMI Classes of 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014.
 
My EMI “odyssey” began during my ...