Cornell University President Martha Pollack will deliver the keynote address at the Women in Leadership Initiative’s Fall Forum on Tuesday, Sept. 15.
The Women in Leadership (WIL) Initiative began two years ago with a vision to offer continuing professional development opportunities that are purposeful, focused and relevant to the University’s women faculty and staff. After a successful and well-attended pilot program in spring 2020—led by Candace Campbell Jackson, senior vice president and chief of staff, and a steering committee consisting of women leaders at the University—the WIL Initiative continues its leadership development opportunities this fall.
As the fall 2020 programming gets underway, former Vice Chancellor and Provost Michele Wheatly, who now serves as special advisor to the chancellor, will lead the initiative. Wheatly says she is looking forward to building on the success achieved during the pilot program.
“I am delighted to be focusing on supporting women development opportunities, an issue that, as a female in the STEM field, is especially important to me,” Wheatly says. “We have tremendous women on our faculty, among our staff and in leadership roles. We must continue to cultivate and catalyze their career paths by supporting, encouraging and empowering them as they pursue professional growth opportunities.”
Program offerings include the annual Fall Forum Inspire Event and this semester course offerings in two tracks: an academic track and a staff track.
The Fall Forum
The event—“Inspiration for Personal and Professional Development”—will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 15, from 1 to 2 p.m. Keynote speaker is Martha E. Pollack, 14th president of Cornell University and professor of computer science, information science and linguistics. President Pollack will share her experiences and knowledge on leadership preparation, mentorship and career encores. The forum will be held via Zoom and features the keynote address and Q&A. The event is open to University faculty, staff and graduate students.
HOW TO REGISTER: by Wednesday, Sept. 9, to register and receive additional Fall Forum information.
Academic Track
Three virtual Academic Track clinics will be offered that focus on the professional development needs of individual women faculty to build the administrative pipeline, meet them where they are, and help them advance. Participants will be assigned to teams based on shared interests (e.g., impact of lab closure on STEM researchers; impact of conference cancellation on presentation of scholarly work; impact of time spent re-engineering teaching on scholarship; impact of domestic care work on publication rate).
Clinic on Promotion from Assistant to Associate Professor
Sept. 17, 9:30 to 11:30 a.m.
Facilitator: LaVonda N. Reed, Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs and Professor of Law
Clinic on Promotion from Associate to Full Professor
Sept. 22, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Facilitator: Elisa Dekaney, Associate Dean for Research, Graduate Studies, and Internationalization and Professor of Music Education
Non-hierarchical Leadership: Leading Through Persuasive, Identity-Based Power/“Leading from Where You Are”
Oct. 13, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Facilitators: Margaret Usdansky, Research Associate Professor and Director of the Center for Learning and Student Success; Marie Garland, Assistant Provost for Faculty Affairs
HOW TO REGISTER: to register your interest in an Academic Track workshop.
Staff Track
Leadership Development virtual offerings will be facilitated by leadership experts Jack Slavinski and Amy P. Kelly and will include the following opportunities:
Refresher and Preview Session
Sept. 30, 9 to 11 a.m. or 1 to 3 p.m.
The Refresher and Preview Session will cover four leadership development topics: “Positive Mindsets,” “Character Strengths,” “Personal Style” and “Emotional IQ.” Workshop attendees from the spring 2020 cohort are invited back to share their learning and situational application of the session topics, and individuals who are curious about WIL programming for the Spring 2021 semester are invited to participate to gain insight about the program and to hear the experiences of previous participants.
Leadership Development Training—Four-Part Series
Continuing the leadership training track begun this past spring, the workshops below are open to those who completed Leadership Development training with Jack Slavinski and Amy P. Kelly in spring 2020. Each two-hour virtual workshop is part of a comprehensive leadership system that includes pre-reading, assessments and/or personal reflection activities, as well as active participation in session activities and discussions:
Communication Effectiveness Strategies
Oct. 1, 9 to 11 a.m. or 1 to 3 p.m.
Leadership communication is often cited as the most important of dozens of competencies. In this session, the group will look at problematic leadership communication blind spots and how this impacts relationships and trust. The group will learn conflict management tips to gain greater initiative commitment, incorporating emotional IQ training. Several challenging biases prevalent in the workplace will be discussed, and proven debunking methods will be shared. Finally, the group will learn how to seek feedback using best practice strategies.
Relationship Management and Trust Building
Oct. 13, 9 to 11 a.m. or 1 to 3 p.m.
Our relationships and trust levels are built through our communication effectiveness and how we connect with others. This session will focus on integrating communication and other strategies into relationship building. The team will explore key elements of building trust and the trust “lens” others use with us. This includes the way people manage character strengths, relationship connections and position competency. Participants will develop a trust action plan.
Developing High Performing Teams (HPT)
Oct. 27, 9 to 11 a.m. or 1 to 3 p.m.
The highest performing teams have a strong foundation of positive relationships and trust. They are more resilient and adaptable. The team will learn proven HPT criteria and techniques to assess, design and develop teams to improve culture, performance and results. Discussion will focus on what defines HPT players in the context of participants’ work. Participants will develop techniques to gain more consistent HPT change adaptability and behavior accountability.
Leading Organizational Change
Nov. 10, 9 to 11 a.m. or 1 to 3 p.m.
Gaining buy-in to major change initiatives can be highly challenging. Many key factors must be focused on to achieve greater levels of sustained success. These include, but are not limited to, change-mindset, trust, goal clarity and culture. The team will learn what is required to prepare systemically for organizational change to gain a greater level of adoption using a proven framework. Participants will apply a comprehensive model to assess change readiness. The team will develop a change action plan to prepare individuals for greater levels of change adaptability.
HOW TO REGISTER: to register your interest in a Staff Track workshop.
Steering Committee members for the Women in Leadership Initiative are: Maureen Casey, chief operating officer of the Institute for Veterans and Military Families; Sue Cornelius Edson, executive senior associate athletics director/communications; Elisa Dekaney, associate dean for research, graduate studies, and internationalization and professor of music education; Alexandra Epsilanty, associate vice president for international advancement; Marie Garland, assistant provost for faculty affairs; Catherine Gerard, director of the Program for the Advancement of Research on Conflict and Collaboration and associate director of executive education programs in the Maxwell School; LaVonda Reed, associate provost for faculty affairs and professor of law; Dara J. Royer, senior vice president and chief marketing and communications officer; Michele Wheatly, special advisor to the Chancellor and professor of biology; and Candace Campbell Jackson, senior vice president and chief of staff to the Chancellor.
Questions about fall 2020 programming may be submitted to Misty Schutt at womeninleadership@syr.edu.
