Transcript Slide 1

Contemplative Leaders in
Action…
a program for emerging leaders
Jesuit Collaborative
Fordham, June, 2009
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Presentation Outline
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The program (target audience,
program structure, implementation)
Our experience to date
Open forum discussion
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The program mission:
“….to nurture emerging, Christcentered leaders so that they can
impact society.”
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The program = one response to
a daunting challenge:
“Unless religious leaders take young
adults more seriously, the future of
American religion is in doubt.”
(Robert Wuthnow, After the Baby
Boomers)
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Program participants:
Who we were after…
How we looked….
What we found…
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The target demographic for our
pilot:
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Christian men and women, aged
approximately 25 to 35
Employed in marketplace, church,
government, non-profit
Demonstrated leadership potential
and faith commitment
….Jesuit school grads a prime but
not exclusive niche
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Over a two-year period, the
cohort would commit to:
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A monthly evening meeting
An annual weekend retreat
Opportunity for mentoring and/or for
spiritual direction
Involvement in service work
= balancing real commitment
against their “time famine”
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We sought a manageable
number of “high probability”
nominees, approaching:
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Presidents of metro NY Jesuit high schools
Pastors of metro NY Jesuit parishes
Campus ministry and other contacts at
Jesuit universities
Alpha Sigma Nu
Jesuit Volunteer Corps
CLC and other “networkers”
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The application process:
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We received about 50-60 nominee
names/email addresses
About 25-30 of these completed a
short application form and were
interviewed
We accepted 19
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The first cohort was wonderfully,
but not Platonically, diverse:
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Gender balanced
Rather more single than married
Racially and ethnically diverse—but
no Hispanic!
Highly accomplished in diverse
occupations [Heavy on finance and
law (this is NYC, after all!), but no
healthcare and no religious]
Virtually all Catholic
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Program Architecture:
Spiritual and Worldly
Jesuit
Self-sustaining
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Provide spiritual formation and
leadership development, e.g.:
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Learning prayer techniques
Learning about self via personality
inventories and group dynamics
Praying together
Researching and discussing critical
social issues
Discussing leadership theory
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Through a “secular” lens, the
program is a strategy for selfleadership:
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Know yourself, including strengths
and weaknesses
Develop a point of view on the
world
Figure out where you want to lead
(a sense of mission and vision)
Acquire skills and tools that help
you go there
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Through a “spiritual” lens, the
program draws heavily from the
Spiritual Exercises:
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Learn and practice the Examen
Learn the “technology” of Ignatian
discernment
Reflect on current reality of self and world
(“First Week”)
Articulate personal purpose and mission
(“Kingdom” and “Second Week” themes)
Embrace the practice of an annual retreat
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Why the program ideally fits
Jesuit culture, tradition, mission:
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Help the Church reach a critical yet
neglected population
Help create a “Jesuit network” in major
cities
Accompany adults in their prime lifedecision years (for centuries, a Jesuit
hallmark)
Track high-potential Jesuit grads through
the “lost decade” of young adulthood
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Why the program fits (cont.):
The program beneficiaries, “will grow
up to be….civic officials, and will fill
other important posts to everybody’s
profit and advantage.”
(Fr. Polanco, justifying the education
ministry)
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Design challenges we faced
(and face):
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Quickly getting down the “cost
curve” to sustainability
Replicability: designing modules that
don’t depend on specific experts
Balancing spiritual and worldly: we
are doing something new, aiming for
the “uncomfortable middle”
Balancing participant leadership in
molding content vs. our design goals
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The bottom line:
How do we implement it?
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Key steps toward a successful
September start-up:
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Form a stakeholder/steering
group
Find a space
Find a facilitator
Find funding
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A hypothetical September
launch (continued):
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Invite campus ministers, high school
presidents, pastors, etc to nominate
candidates (April 1)
Invite candidates to apply (mid April)
Conduct info sessions/applicant
screening (mid May)
By early June, confirm participants,
inform them of Fall meeting dates,
etc
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What did we learn?
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Opening retreat critically important:
bonding, trust-building, program
definition, etc
Regular attendance important:
Quicker “in or out” decisions for
those who miss meetings
Optimal size?
• We started with 19
• 12-15 better if the ‘economics’ work
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What did we learn?
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Participants strongly valued
community, network, spiritual “tools”
A month between sessions is a long
time
more homework?
social or other events?
spiritual “check in” emails?
catch up the person who missed?
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What did we learn?
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We probably tried to cover too
much—go for a bit more depth
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What we learned---ideas the
percolated:
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Use ‘sub-committees’ to arrange
social dimension, structure service
project, etc?
Meet in someone’s home
occasionally?
Meet informally with one or another
Jesuit (I.e. the group wants to be
part of this ‘family’ or ‘network’)
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Our vision: we imagine
national/international
replications where:
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Veteran participants mentor junior ones
Participants become both “spiritual
friends” and a business and social network
The program co-sponsors lectures, prayer,
etc for the “Jesuit community” of a city:
building Jesuit identity beyond institutional
allegiance
Across cities and world, program
participants feel a common bond, made
tangible on-line and through conferences
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The big picture: where do we go
from here
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2008/9 = New York
2009/10 + Boston and Philadelphia
2010/11 + 4 to 6 more cities?
(Chicago, Cleveland, Syracuse,
Dublin, Melbourne, Seattle,
Santiago/Chile)
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Where do we go from here:
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Systematic marketing in 2009/2010
Program materials on-line by end2009
“Practitioners Network” by Fall, ’09
Participant Network by Fall, ’09
Codify the “non-negotiables” of a
CLIA program by early 2010
Begin thinking beyond year two
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