vancouver community college’s leadership club for students: lessons learned from year one
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Vancouver Community College’s Leadership Club for Students: Lessons Learned from Year One. Presented By: Sean Hinton and Melissa Grover 3 rd Annual Student Leadership Symposium May 22, 2008 Kwantlen University College – Richmond Campus. Overview. Program Overview Program Development - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Vancouver Community College’s Leadership Club for Students: Lessons Learned from Year
One
Presented By: Sean Hinton and Melissa Grover
3rd Annual Student Leadership SymposiumMay 22, 2008
Kwantlen University College – Richmond Campus
Overview
• Program Overview• Program Development• Recruitment• Program phase 1• Program phase 2• Community Leadership Project• Lessons Learned• Conclusion
Program Overview
VCC Leadership Club for Students:
• 8-Month Program• Weekly Meetings• 1.5 hour meetings• 3 Parts Leadership Development• 1 Part Guest Speaker• 1 Part Self-Reflection• 3 Parts Community Leadership Project• Scrapbook
Program Development
1) Identified need, value and fit within the organization.2) “Scrubbed” best practices.3) Surveyed VCC students, employees and graduates
through our annual student census and various meetings.4) Approached the first year of the program as a pilot.5) Guest speakers a must!6) Project funding.7) Recruitment material/web space.8) Meeting material… distributed prior to or after the
meeting?
Recruitment
• Web page developed on VCC site.• Signage distributed around the college (banners,
brochures, place cards, link to web page) inviting all students to an information session.
• Booths at student services orientation events.• Information session at each campus.• Club email address and group created.• Incentives are a must!
Leadership Club – Phase One
• September to December 2007.• Started with 25, ended with 8 – 12 regulars.• Heavy focus on introduction to leadership and
guest speakers.• Consistency and continuity is key in this stage.• Focus on building a solid group dynamic.• Mentorship is very important – Participants found
their own or we helped identify them.
Leadership Club – Phase Two
• January to April 2008.• Started with 4, ended with 3.• More focus on facilitated discussion, dialogue and
debate.• Support the community leadership project.• No guest speakers.• Focus on compiling the scrapbook.
The Community Project
Expectations
Process
Outcomes
What We Learned
The Community Project - Expectations
Opportunity to Use Leadership Plan and Leadership Skills
Leave a Mark in the Community
The Community Project - Process
Volunteer Opportunities - Ongoing Discussion
Brainstorm Possibilities
Draft a Work Plan - Assign and Perform Tasks
Carry Out Project – Event
The Community Project - Outcomes
Time Spent Choosing a Project
Decision-Making
Assignment of Responsibilities
Carry Out of Tasks
The Event
The Community Project – What We Learned
Make Intentions and Expectations Clear
Provide Participants with Direction
Decide how Decisions will be Made
Awareness of Available Resources
Be Flexible
Lessons Learned• Tailor your program to suit your institution, and even
the cohort that you will be working with.• Do not provide a lot of work to be completed outside
of the group, no homework!• Consistency is key; every meeting must take place as
scheduled and should be with the same group of facilitators.
• There will be no shortage of guest speakers available.• Our program could have been condensed; keep it
simple and packed full of information.• Those who finish the program will find it an invaluable
experience that complements their studies.• Incentives are a good way of keeping people
motivated.
Lessons Learned Continued
• Attrition was our biggest challenge in year one.• Funding will be a challenge to many; there are
many sources of funding for these projects available.
• Strengthen your program by having a student advisory group (important for feedback).
• Taking time to extract feedback from those who completed the program was extremely useful.
• Understand the strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities of your program.
• What made the program unique was the community project, access to mentors and guest speakers.
ConclusionStudent Testimonials:
“The club has helped bring me to my next step in my life journey”
“ This club has taught me a lot about myself, others, and group dynamics”.
“ This club has helped me on my journey of creating a legacy for the community”.
Contact Us
Vancouver Community College Leadership Club for Students
Sean Hinton – [email protected] – 604.871.7158
Melissa Grover – [email protected] – 604.443.8313