University of Louisville

Office of Civic Engagement, Leadership, and Service

Recommendations

By

Corey Seemiller, PhD

May 2009

OVERALL ANALYSIS

After researching the programs, being in the office, and meeting and talking with various partners, collaborators, students, and faculty/staff, it appears that the CELS staff and those I interacted with care deeply about students and offering meaningful experiences for them. The 3 CELS staff seemed very open to new ideas and really have the best interest of the students in mind. It appears that students enjoy interacting with the CELS staff and crave more interaction with the staff. The following report is broken into 3 main sections: Recommendations, Structural Options for LEAD, and Ideas for Leadership Curriculum. The first section, Recommendations, includes my recommendations about vision, theoretical foundation, niche, staffing, attracting students, partnerships, modifications to existing programs, new programs, and logistics. The second section, Structural Options for LEAD, includes 3 possible structures for LEAD. Finally, Ideas for Leadership Curriculum includes ideas for both leadership development and leadership training curriculum.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Vision

VISION AND STRATEGIC PLAN

It looks as though some thoughts have been put to paper about new initiatives for CELS especially as they relate to the Student Affairs strategic plan. I would recommend developing a vision and strategic plan with goals and timelines that is very specific and breaks down new initiatives into small pieces. Utilize the university and student affairs strategic plans as guidance, but develop your own objectives as well. It is important to lay out a plan of at least 5 years and parcel out implementation of programs/initiatives over those 5 years.

Theoretical Foundation

DEFINITIONS

After my meeting with the CELS staff, it appears that although they have some of the same philosophies around the definition of leadership, they did not have a core operational definition. I would suggest developing and adopting definitions of leadership, service, and engagement that reflect all the programs of the office. Guide your program development and practice using these definitions and share them with others.

FRAMEWORK

I would highly recommend investigating, educating yourselves, and adopting one or more leadership models to use as a framework for your leadership initiatives (LEAD, conference, class, etc.). Plan all of your outlines for programs using this framework as if you were developing lesson plans for a class. The learning and development should be cumulative. The Bonner 5 Es are a great example of a framework.

CAS STANDARDS

One resource you will want to consider using to assist you in the development of your programs and the office as a whole is the CAS Standards for Leadership. It will be important for CELS staff to go through the CAS Standards and decide what really matters most to have as program objectives since the list from CAS is long and broad. It is better to identify 5 program objectives from CAS anddo them well than to try integrate every program objective which may result in not really doing any of them very well.

LEARNING OUTCOMES AND ASSESSMENT

The process that Pam was going through to write learning outcomes for ECPY seemed like a very good one. I know the plan was to write measurable learning outcomes for all programs. I suggest engaging in this process of developing learning outcomes as one of the first orders of business so that all programs have measurable outcomes. You will want to integrate learning outcomes from the critical thinking model, but add others that reflect learning not related to critical thinking. Develop specific language for a particular outcome, and if another program has that same outcome, use the exact language. Develop and use common assessment questions for all programs. Then, you can benchmark your programs against each other.

PROGRAM CONNECTION

I noticed that CELS seemed to lack a core, meaning that there were a cluster of programs offered, but they did not seem to feel connected to each other. These programs could have been easily offered out of Student Activities, Housing, Office of Community Engagement, the CulturalCenter, etc. Although these programs are good, something needs to tie them together-a common experience, common language, shared theory, branding, etc. so they feel appropriately placed in CELS.

Niche

ADOPT LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT AS A NICHE

The programs offered seemed to be loosely tied to a theoretical/developmental framework and more often reflected leadership training or networking with professionals in different fields rather than transformational leadership development. The program that most reflects leadership development is the ECPY course, which I believe can serve as a model to the other programs offered. It is apparent that many units engage in leadership training for their peer mentors/advisors, SGA, RAs, etc. The niche that stands out to me is for CELS to be the hub of leadership development on campus. Leadership development includes all the transformational components of leadership (values exploration, identity development, talking across differences, etc.). Leadership training includes those specific skills helpful to be in an organization (running meetings, budgeting, event planning, time management, etc.). It was clear from my conversations with people that although leadership training was occurring, leadership development was not happening very much on campus. If CELS could be this hub for doing leadership development for a variety of students prior to them being trained for a position, students and their organizations/units would be better off.

CHANGE CURRICULUM TO REFLECT LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

It was also noticeable in some programs, especially Freshman LEAD, that much of the session facilitation is outsourced to speakers. In a leadership development program in which the experience is intended to be developmental for students, it is much more powerful for the same one, two, or three people to be there each session and facilitate every topic without bringing in outside speakers. This gives continuity to the material by having the facilitator(s) build on it each session with topics intentionally designed to be cumulative. In addition, having the same facilitator(s) will also mean that he/she will know the audience better than the outside facilitators brought in for one session. Because of this, he or she can adapt sessions as necessary to fit with the group and previous learning experiences. The continuity of the facilitator(s) also maintains the trust built within the leadership program. Regardless of how good the outside speaker is, he or she is still an outsider to a community that has hopefully built an intimate sense of trust throughout their time together. Although I believe it is important to bring in speakers from time to time to expose students to people in various career fields and have them share their ideas on leadership, this approach is not ideal when doing comprehensive leadership development with the same set of students.

TRAINING MODULES

Although I recommend leadership development as the niche for CELS, I would suggest providing some centralized support for other units/organizations wanting and needing to do leadership training with their students. I would recommend developing a set of training modules (lesson plans) that are grab and gos for other professionals who are doing leadership training for their student leaders. For instance, develop a one hour module on running meetings. Then, make the curriculum available for others to use. This way, you share your expertise in leadership skills with others without having to run everyone’s training. Also, there is a common language with students who have been through particular modules in their respective roles.

Staffing

STAFF TRAINING IN LEADERSHIP

All CELS staff need exposure to and training on leadership development. If they are not already, they should be members of the National Clearinghouse for Leadership Programs, go to the Leadership Educators Institute, National Leadership Symposium, and/or the International Leadership Association, as well as read a lot of foundational books/articles about leadership. Each of them should be comfortable developing leadership development and training curriculum for use in a retreat, class, meeting, etc. and be comfortable facilitating the curriculum.

DEVELOP STUDENT ROLES AND OWNERSHIP

Although it did not necessarily come up as a concern from students, one thing that stood out most to me is the lack of student involvement in developing and runningtheir own programs. Having the sophomore directors for Freshman LEAD is a great model to draw from. Perhaps students can write curriculum, coordinate events, oversee other students’ experiences. I believe all programs could have more students running various aspects of them. This could assist in staffing, allow for more heads to solve problems and develop ideas, create student ownership in their own experience, as well as set up a structure that allows peers to mentor peers (which some argue is more effective). These roles may be TA positions for the leadership classes, cohort leaders for LEAD, one or more SOUL coordinators, speakerseries coordinator, coordinator of America Reads, etc.; any position that would be useful in working with each program.

CREATIVE STAFFING

At this point, I am not recommending more full-time or graduate staff than have been slated for in 2009-2010. I believe that with the incorporation of students into leadership roles, many new initiatives could be undertaken. In addition, partnering with the CSP program may allow more graduate students to be involved in coordinating programs for their internships. Also, it may be useful to have the RLC of the leadership living learning community attend CELS meetings as they apply to LEAD. This person may even be great to teach a section of ECPY.

Attracting Students

BRAND YOURSELVES:

I would suggest branding your office and your programs. Capitalize on Engage.Lead.Serve. Buy the domain name and reroute it to your office website. Also, I would recommendputting Engage.Lead.Serve under every logo for every program you offer. Stuart Esrock could be a great resource for you to brainstorm ways to get your office and/or program names out there.

SERVE BROADER AND LARGER AUDIENCE

It appears that there are some excellent programs in CELS, but the number served is so small compared to both the campus population as well as the staff time put into them. As I recognize programs like Bonner Leaders and ASB are important and very transformational for those who participate, with the limited staffing in the office, I would recommend utilizing staff to develop and coordinate programs that serve a much larger and wider constituency. I am not recommending eliminating these programs, but these may be able to be run by students thus freeing up professional staff time to do higher level leadership development and service learning work.

OPEN AND RENAME FRESHMAN LEAD

Rename Freshman LEAD to LEAD and open it to any student who wants to participate. If the concepts are truly developmental, a sophomore or senior could benefit from going through it just as much as a first year student. In addition, the word “freshman” is being used less and less on college campuses (instead first-year is being used) because of its male gendered language, “man.”

ACCEPT MORE STUDENTS IN LEAD

Open up LEAD to take in 100-120 students. Have those who completed LEAD serve as coordinators, cohort leaders, etc. This additional free staffing would provide great leadership opportunities for students and help with staffing the program. From a budget perspective, have a group of students serve on a fundraising committee and write grants or engage in fundraising to offset costs for the additional people in the program.

COMPLETION OF LEAD FOR LEADERSHIP ROLES

I highly suggest working with more campus partners to require the completion of LEAD to be considered for a leadership role (REACH is a great model). Maybe add peer mentors, peer advisors, RAs, Frazier interns, any of the new CELS positions (SOUL coordinator, coordinator of America Reads, TAs, etc.). For partners outside of CELS, if only taking students who have completed LEAD is not an option, maybe you can ask them to agree to consider first any student who has completed LEAD for leadership positions before others who have not completed LEAD.

OUTREACH TO VARIOUS POPULATIONS

If LEAD were opened up and other programs expanded as detailed below, the programs themselves would no longer appear to be limited to first-year students and work study students. Just opening LEAD will draw students from various populations. In addition, creating partnerships in which LEAD is a requirement for a student to be in a particular leadership role, may give you free marketing. When each of these units outreaches to students to get them to apply for leadership roles and indicate that the students must have completed LEAD to do so, you are getting widespread marketing. The more partners you have, the more marketing you will get (you will need to be careful not to have so many partners that you do not have enough space in LEAD to cater to them). In addition, all marketing materials should explicitly appear to invite students of all backgrounds and experiences to be involved and should be available in the LGBT office, CulturalCenter, InterfaithCenter, Student Activities, DisabilityResourceCenter, first-year seminars, and anywhere that serves transfer students, commuter students, etc. Marketing that includes testimonials from students who have participated in programs in which they mention a leadership role they have been in may help show the diversity of involvement of participants.

Partnerships

CREATE A CAMPUS-WIDE LEADERSHIP COMMITTEE

One of the things I noticed about the University of Louisville that differed from other campuses I have been to is the decentralization of campus services and programs. I was amazed that not only are there very small departments that may specialize in one or two things, some departments seemed to have overlapping program underpinnings (such as REACH and First Year Initiatives and CELS and Office of Community Engagement.) Some departments that seemed related also didn’t necessarily report through the same Vice President or Vice Provost either. This may make the work that CELS does very difficult as leadership training is one of those things that many other departments appear to do with their own students in a freestanding way. Because of this, I would suggest creating a committee or board in which all those who do anything that helps develop or train students as leaders come together monthly to discuss issues, collaborate on programs/events, and create a centralized leadership calendar.

DEVELOP AND MAINTAIN PARTNERSHIPS

It appeared to me that the partnerships created with partners outside the university andpartners within the university have proven to be invaluable to both parties. Building and developing partnerships is a great asset CELS has. It will be important during the strategic planning process to identify more future partners. I would suggest having formalized campus-based partnerships with the InterfaithCenter, LGBTQCenter, CulturalCenter, and others. A formalized partnership may mean that a unit’s student leader positions are tied to the completion of LEAD, professionals from these units serve on the campus-wide leadership committee, and/or that there is some joint programming between the units. The Frazier Intern Program could be a nice model for outside partnerships either as a program specific to LEAD or as a freestanding program.

Modifications to Existing Programs

CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT WITH LEAD

What I noticed most about Freshman LEAD is that it relies heavily on outside speakers to come talk to the students. Like I said, I would suggest creating a leadership development curriculum for LEAD that is based on a framework, is transformative, and is cumulative. Only bring in speakers on occasion and not in the context of leadership development. Developmental curriculum should be facilitated by Gerome and perhaps a cadre of trained students who are with the students each session. Leadership development topics may include values clarification, identity development, ethical decision-making, strengths, and appreciation of differences. They should be in an order that makes sense from a developmental perspective. I would suggest having topics related to leadership training such as running meetings, delegating, and public speaking not in this curriculum but in training they receive later regarding a position they enter or role they take on and/or in the training modules developed by CELS. I would recommend having a much greater emphasis on teambuilding throughout LEAD including having a ropes/challenge course. In addition, incorporating inclusivity and SafeZone/Ally components into the curriculum is vital.