GLF launched its first cohort in 2012 and gained its nonprofit status in Washington State in 2016. GLF relies on a distributed leadership model in which the program's co-founders, Bob Ness and Peter Blomquist, and Managing Director, Kim Rakow Bernier, work in tandem to make strategic programmatic decisions. A small and mighty board of directors supports the organization through governance and individual advice and expertise. The GLF Alumni Community is facilitated with the support of GLF alumni.