“DO IT! It's amazing, and I think everyone can take something out of this program.”

• Do you wish you had a community of peers to explore how leadership could look differently?
• Are you maybe even reluctant to call yourself a leader because you haven’t experienced the kind of leadership that you want?
• Are you wanting to connect to your own wisdom and power and become more intentional in your leadership?
• Are you ready to share power with others in ways that interrupt oppressive power dynamics and build compassionate, inclusive, and equitable relationships?
• Can you imagine stepping into mindful, relationship-oriented leadership in a bigger way in your community and/or organization?

The Community Leadership Accelerator, now in its fourth iteration, is a program designed to develop diverse leaders who are grounded in their own leadership, can sustain themselves as leaders, value human connection and relationships, and can drive community change.

We are living through times like none we’ve experienced. Global pandemic, heightened awareness around and calls for dismantling oppressive systems, devastating effects of climate change, wars, and economic instability. Nonprofits are viewed as an essential lifeline, but the stressors inside and outside of organizations are stretching leaders thin resulting in wave of turnover and gaps to fill. These times call for courageous and resilient leaders who can lead from a different, more sustainable, leadership model.

Program Goals: 

• To facilitate the sharing of the wisdom and strengths in the room and the building of a peer community:
• To build the emotional and social intelligence necessary for effective leadership
• To encourage and support practices that restore, inspire, sustain, and empower community leaders
• To explore what sharing leadership and power looks like 
• To explore how to elevate relationship building and create strong teams with purpose
• To connect individual growth with systems and institutional change
• To put learning into practice
• To develop a pool (or pipeline) of community leaders who can drive change towards healthy, equitable and resilient organizations and communities.

Underpinnings of the program:

• Emotional Intelligence
• Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity
• Sharing Power and relationship-building
• Mindfulness and self-care

Program structure: 8-month program with around 20 participants from Southern Arizona, Phoenix and all the communities between and around.

• February 2023: 3-day in-person opening retreat: 
• 2/8: 12:00 – 5:00
• 2/9: 9:00 – 4:00
• 2/10: 9:00 – 2:00

• Virtual Workshops
• 3/31: 9:00 – 12:00
• 5/12: 9:00 – 12:0
• 8/11: 9:00 – 12:00
• 9/29: 9:00 – 12:00

• October 2023: 3-day in-person closing retreat: 
• 10/25: 12:00 – 5:00
• 10/26: 9:00 – 4:00
• 10/27: 9:00 – 2:00

• Additional growth supports:
• EQ Assessment and debrief
• Practicum—applying the principles in action—which culminates in a Leadership Memoir (required for completion of the program
• Two coaching sessions with each leader (one of which will be EQ debrief) 
• Participation in peer application circles
• Homework, including pre-reading, practices and assessments