Maddy Institute Executive Director Blake Zante (right) leads a conversation with journalist Robert Costa during an event in December 2024. Photo via The Maddy Institute

A Central Valley educational and civic nonprofit institute has launched a rebrand to strengthen its regional impact as it reaches its 25^th anniversary.

The Maddy Institute, a Fresno-based organization that supports leadership development, civic engagement and public policy analysis in the San Joaquin Valley, has unveiled a new logo to reflect its expanded reach, renewed mission and commitment to the area.

In addition to the new logo, the rebrand includes a modernized digital presence and upcoming website relaunch that will provide more visibility and accessibility in its eight-county service area.

The Maddy Institute was founded by the California Legislature in 1999 to honor the late Sen. Kenneth L. Maddy. The former state Senate Republican leader — known as a moderate who reached across the aisle to work with Democrats — saw the formation of the Maddy Institute before he died in 2000.

The institute has partnerships with four universities — University of California, Merced, and the California State University campuses in Fresno, Bakersfield and Stanislaus.

The Maddy Institute leverages its relationships with universities and elected officials to place promising young students into paid internships with representatives on the local, state and national level. To date, about 600 students have come through the program, known as Maddy interns.

The Maddy Institute provides stipends for the students to support their internships — $2,400 for city government work, $6,000 for a summer in Sacramento and $7,000 for Washington, D.C.

 

The modernized website, maddyinstitute.com, will offer new tools and features designed to benefit the community, policy makers and students. There will also be easier access to resources, public affairs programming and voter information.

The Maddy Institute provides elected officials and public managers with nonpartisan, data-driven insights to help them make more informed decisions.

Melissa Frank, chair of the Maddy Institute’s board of directors, said the rebrand will strengthen their ability to inspire and support future leaders.

Frank, assistant general counsel for government affairs with The Wonderful Company, was a 2001 Maddy intern in the California Senate.

“This new identity will better reflect the innovative, collaborative, and impactful work we do every day,” Frank said.

Blake Zante, executive director at the Maddy Institute, said a driver for the rebrand was to maintain legacy, but also to look forward.

Zante has been on the job with The Maddy Institute since January 2024. Himself a former Maddy intern, he went on to serve as a political staffer, most recently as a district representative to former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy.

He said many of the interns have gone on to become judges, attorneys, elected officials and business leaders.

“Part of the rebrand is bringing the alumni community together and finding ways to better connect them, and not only get them more involved at the institute, but find how the institute can support their growth and their career development,” Zante said.

The Maddy Institute is also rolling out new programming through partnerships with the Central Valley Community Foundation, San Joaquin Community Foundation, the Stanislaus Community Foundation, and the Kern Community Foundation.

The foundations recently launched a legislative roundtable to bring elected officials on both sides of the aisle to have candid conversations and talk about key issues impacting the region and the business community.

Zante said there are plans to expand their internship programs and place students in state and federal agencies such as the California Department of Food and Agriculture.

 

One new feature of the website will be an online internship application for students interns interested in working for local, state and federal representatives.

“We are the conduit between Sacramento and Washington, D.C., and trying to elevate the Valley’s voices in those policy making spaces,” Zante said.

The institute is working with Fresno’s Jeffery Scott Agency for the rebranding.

Iconography of the California State Capitol dome — similar to the previous logo — represents the institute’s connection to state policy making, with lines underneath the dome in the new logo representing farm fields.

The rebranding process has taken about a year, time spent gathering feedback from stakeholders.

Part of the rebrand is expanding The Maddy Institute’s profile across the Valley, and not to being so “Fresno centric.”

On Feb. 24, there will be a ceremony to celebrate a new partnership with State Center Community College District to provide internships for community college students.

The Maddy Institute is nonpartisan, and doesn’t take positions on issues, but it keeps its pulse on how policy plays out in the real world. One topic of current interest are the proposed Trump administration tariffs.

“It’s something that the Valley is a talking about right now—not just the business community, but the agriculture community, the work force and how it will impact their wages, and consumers and how it will impact prices,” Zante said.

He said there are plans for additional agriculture programming, including the launch of an Ag Policy Center. It will host its third annual Ag Summit later this year, where various topics to discuss including water, tariffs, labor and bird flu.

Part of the rebrand entails dramatically increasing their social media presence to promote their internship programs, university partnerships, and other programs around policy.

Zante said the business community has been incredibly supportive, with about 50% of its operating budget coming from local businesses though the Maddy Associates membership.

He said they are open to feedback on how their programs can make an even bigger impact..

“I’m very receptive to ideas from the community to see what we can do,” he said.