The 29 women sitting in the former dining room of a historic Upper East Side townhouse reflected flags from across the world: Some were naturalized citizens from Mexico, Vietnam, the Democratic Republic of Congo; others were first-generation Americans with roots in Sri Lanka or China.

Addressing the group on Friday, Sayu Bhojwani, founder of the New American Leaders Project, which helps train people of immigrant heritage to run for public office, let loose a battle cry. “Ladies,” she said, “this is what American leadership looks like!”

With that, she sent the prospective candidates off to hone their messages, claim their stories and network for a full weekend.

It was the first all-female training for the national organization, which Ms. Bhojwani, the first commissioner of immigrant affairs under Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, founded five years ago in New York. The program included only a few women who planned to run in the next year; most were considering races ranging from school board to city council sometime in the next five years.