PMC’s Rudin Leadership Workshops
in High Schools from Maine
to New York
The Center for ilsr has
hit the road—with an exciting new program expanding the Susan
and Jack Rudin Leadership Conferences. To share the concepts of
inclusive leadership and social responsibility more widely, the
Center’s high school leadership programming, thanks to the
continuing support from the Rudins, is now able to offer a series
of free workshops to high school students throughout New England.
The two-hour workshops, held on-site at high schools, provide an
intensive leadership program for female sophomores, juniors, and
seniors.
“The feedback (from the Leadership Workshop)
resounded with enthusiasm. Our students commented: ‘I loved
the group interactions,’ and ‘I thought it was helpful
to talk about issues we could actually solve in our school.’ Many
thanks for Pine Manor College’s support of this fine program.”
—Director
of Student Activities in a Connecticut high school
Activities focus on helping participants create a positive
change in their school in a way that includes all voices —especially
those possibly neglected in the past. The workshops focus on one
or two issues, chosen by the high school students from the following:
working more effectively in teams; increasing self-confidence; becoming
a more inclusive community; conflict resolution; speaking up for
ourselves as young women; and better understanding diversity.
During
each workshop, the students are taken through an “action
planning” process
to help create positive changes in their schools. Plans arising out of this year’s
workshops have included the creation of a community service club; a letter-writing
campaign to the State Board of Education regarding serious facilities problems;
revitalization of a student council to better communicate students’ views
to school administrators; development of a “peer mediation team” to
address an increasing number of student-to-student conflicts; and creation of
a “girls’ group” to meet weekly to deal with issues unique
to young women in their school environment.
To date, the Center has received 24
requests for workshops and has facilitated workshops in 16 schools, with more
scheduled. Designed for groups of 15 to 20, recent workshops have accommodated
from 6 to 45 students. Center staff have traveled to schools from rural Maine
to New York City. In most cases, a PMC student co-facilitates the workshops
with the Center’s Director of Youth and Student Programs.
Jasmine Haynes ’05, Jo Madaglia ’05, and Donnaree Wynter ’05
co-facilitated workshops this year.
The new program will enhance accessibility
and opportunity:
- High school students have increasing demands on their time—jobs,
family obligations, sports, college preparatory work, community service.
Bringing leadership programs to them benefits more students.
- The
cost of a full weekend-long orweek-long program can be prohibitive
for many students. The new workshop program will provide all participants
with the opportunity to experience our leadership programs at no cost.
- When
students attended the Leadership Conferences on campus, only
one student represented her school and developed a plan to
take back to her community. Following the new workshops, however,
many participants will be able to work together as a team to
create positive change in their school.
|
