Leadership Victoria Core Program Overview
2015 – 2016
Community Leadership Development Program
Program Overview
Purpose and Benefits
Learning Changes People
People Change Community
Are you seeking a unique, hands-on learning opportunity for Community Leadership Development?
Imagine combining the best of leadership practices with real life, real-time opportunities to apply
theories and skills learned in class, work in teams and partner with community organizations to design
and create unique projects that benefit the community!
The Leadership Victoria signature program contributes to your personal and career development and
prepares you to become a vibrant community leader. Here are the Top Six reasons why participants like
you choose this program:
1.
Grow Your Network. Build relationships with people from a wide range of fields and professions.
Make new connections and increase your contact base. The Team Leaders and Mentors you
meet will be invaluable to your growth.
2.
Learn New Skills and Explore Possibilities. Want to try something new or wondering if a
leadership direction is right for you? Test new waters and gain skills in areas which are not
presently part of your regular lifestyle.
3.
Develop High Performing Team Skills. Work as an active member of a project team and learn to
use your strengths and identify where you should stretch for the benefit of the team and
yourself.
4.
Get to Know your Community. Gain new insight into neighbourhoods, demographics and the
heartbeat of your community, even if you’ve lived here all your life, but especially if you are new
to the area.
5.
Refresh, Renew and Recharge your Passion. Spend a little time each week an pursue your
passion. Create positive change to re-fuel your energy and enthusiasm for your job and make a
difference in your community.
6.
Build your Resume. Does your resume reflect a person who lives a balanced life, takes an
interest in the work beyond their job and is always looking for ways to grow? Employers and
community organizations are looking for people like you!
2015 – 2016 Calendar
These dates and locations will be confirmed at the Program Orientation sessions.
Program
Orientation
Leadership
Launch
Team Field Trip
Community
Learning Days
Community
Learning Days
Community
Learning Days
Wed August 26
OR
Thurs Sept 3
5:15pm – 6:15pm
Sept 18 – 20
October 1
October 23-24
November 6 - 7
December 11-12
Fri 10am to
Sun 2pm
Thurs 1-3:30pm
Fri. 1pm - 4:30pm
Sat. 8:30–4:30
Fri. & Sat.
8:30am–4:30pm
Fri 8:30am-4:30
Sat 8:30 amNoon
Saanich Fire Hall,
Kirby Room
Lake Cowichan
Education Centre
University of
Victoria
Royal Roads
University
Central Saanich
Fire Hall
EXPERIENTIAL
PROGRAM
Community
Learning Day
Community
Learning Day
Community
Learning Day
Graduation
January
Fri Feb 19
Fri Apr 15
Sat May 14
Wed May 18
Police Ride-along
or Job Shadowing
at Social Service
Agency
8:30am–4:30 pm
8:30am–4:30pm
TBA
TBA
8:30am–4:30pm
8:30am–4:30pm
University Club @
UVic
University Club @
UVic
TBA
Program Components
Orientation (attend one of two scheduled sessions)
 Wednesday August 26th or Thursday September 3rd, 5:15-6:15pm
 Location: Saanich Fire Hall, Kirby Room
Full review of program elements; welcome and introduction to key program facilitators and
Leadership Victoria Society. Pre-reading assignments to prepare you for the Leadership Launch
Weekend, plus basic information about the location and details of what you will need to bring.
Participants are encouraged to read The Leadership Challenge: How to Make Extraordinary Things
Happen in Organizations by James Kouzes and Barry Posner. The principles and practices in that
book provide a framework for learning in this program.
Leadership Launch Weekend
 Friday September 18, Saturday September 19, Sunday September 20
 Location: Lake Cowichan Outdoor Education & Conference Centre
Preparing for the journey: an introduction to the tools, structures, and networks participants will
need for a successful journey through the Leadership Victoria program. Get to know your
Community Action Project team and coach, explore themes of community and shared values, and
fun activities to stretch your comfort zone in a safe and supportive climate. Participants consider
their personal leadership development goals and identify the qualities of mentor they’re seeking.
Participants work on team-building activities at Lake Cowichan Outdoor Education Centre
Team Field Trip: Volunteer Victoria Recruitment Fair
 Thursday October 1 – 9am-3:30pm
 Location: University of Victoria, Student Union Building
Community Action Project teams attend the Volunteer Victoria Recruitment Fair to connect with
local community organizations and explore potential matches in relation to team community action
projects. Project teams determine their own schedule for attending this event during the day,
depending on what works for team members.
Community Learning Days: Seeing Systems
 Friday October 23, 1:00pm-4:30pm (preview with program participants only)
 Saturday, October 24, 8:30am-4:30pm (program participants, alumni and community)
 Location: Royal Roads University
The Seeing Systems workshop is a dynamic, yawn-free experience that focuses on the worlds of
Tops, Middles, Bottoms and Customers (also consumers/clients) during turbulent times in
organizations. We will get to the heart of partnership in organization life: what makes partnership so
critical, what gets in the way of it developing, and what is the role of leadership in making it happen.
This visceral approach enables the learning to get beyond the head level to where it really hits home
and sticks. Through this workshop, participants will:
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Understand intellectually and experience viscerally the differing "worlds" of Tops, Middles,
Bottoms, and Customers, and begin to develop concrete strategies for working more
constructively across organizational lines;
Recognize the multiplicity of roles they play, as sometimes Top, Middle, Bottom and
Customer/Client. They will recognize and avoid the disempowering pitfalls of each position, and
approach each role with more effective behavior;
Learn the nuances of providing leadership that addresses issues systemically rather than
personally.
Community Learning Days: Developing Community Action Projects within Complex Systems
 Friday, November 6 and Saturday, November 7, 8:30am-4:30pm
Participants and project teams will learn and apply communication and group facilitation skills to
bring together their Community Action Project team charter and project plan. Team coaches will
work with teams to identify and express the expected outcomes and impact from each project, and
prepare to communicate that project in writing and presentations. Project plans will be submitted to
Leadership Victoria by November 20.
Community Learning Days: Sharing the Vision and Enlisting Others
 Friday, December 11, 8:30-4:30 and Saturday, December 12, 8:30am-12:30
Project teams will “pitch” their projects to a community panel and receive feedback about their
approach, impact and presentations. Feedback will be used immediately to “tweak” the plans and
re-pitch for a second round of feedback.
Leadership Mentoring Match
 December – individuals schedule initial meetings with mentors
Leadership Victoria will have identified a mentor match for each participants. Participants will make
initial meetings with mentors to begin the 9-month relationship that will give them an opportunity
to reflect on their learning in the program and advance their leadership journey in their own
community and workplace contexts.
Experiential Community Learning
 January – individual experiences scheduled with community partners
Each participant will schedule a police ride-along day or job-shadowing shift in a community-serving
agency. This experience provides participants with a deeper understanding of the challenges and
work being done in our community to overcome those challenges.
Community Learning Day: Community Leadership Living Library
 February 19, 8:30-4:30
Community leaders will join the program for a day to explore relevant and emerging issues of
leading and working in partnership in the Greater Victoria community. Participants learn and apply
lateral thinking and problem-solving activities to community issues while expanding their
connections and network in the community. This day also provides an opportunity to de-brief the
experiential community learning activity.
Community Learning Day: Engaging with Community to Solve Challenges
 April 15, 8:30-4:30 (Participants, mentors, alumni and community partners)
Working with a community-serving agency, participants will learn about Human-Centered Design as
a social innovation approach, and tackle a real community challenge in partnership with people
experiencing that challenge in their everyday lives. This session allows participants to demonstrate
their learning from throughout the program in building teams, integrating leadership principles,
understanding the dynamics of a community system, and confident public presentation skills.
Community Learning Day: Practicing Reflection and Giving/Receiving Feedback
 May 14, 8:30-4:30
Participants learn tools for reflective practice and giving and receiving feedback, and use these tools
to reflect on the year’s learning. Participants also discuss “where next?” for their community
leadership journeys.
Graduation Celebration - May 18
 May 18, 4:00-7:00pm (participants, employers, mentors, family & friends)
This ceremony celebrates participants’ learning and applauds team contributions through their
Community Action Projects. The ceremony is sponsored by University of Victoria, and is scheduled for
the late Wednesday afternoon. The audience includes the entire Leadership Victoria community:
families, sponsors, community partners and Leadership Victoria Board members and volunteers.
Community Action Projects
Projects are undertaken by each team with community partners, and must return measurable outcomes
and create lasting benefits to the community. The elements of effective project management are
learned and applied within a collaborative process. Projects differ from year to year, and depending on
their nature or complexity, may require fundraising efforts. Process:
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October-November: Through intense and interactive process based on values, teams identify
their Community Partner, identify measurable outcomes and community benefits and plan their
Community Action Projects.
November 20: Submit broad outcomes and benefits to Leadership Victoria.
December: Complete Project Charter and present Project Plan for feedback
January 15: Submit final project plan with community partner signatures to Leadership Victoria
January-March: Launch and deliver projects within schedule, scope and budget, and in
collaboration with Community Partner.
Program Support
Mentorship Program
Leadership Victoria offers a unique Mentorship program that allows each individual in the cohort an
opportunity to confidentially explore how they might apply what they are learning in the Leadership
Victoria program to their own career. Mentors include a range of senior community leaders who bring a
remarkable combination of experience and insight to the table. Participants and Mentors are matched
through a process beginning in September, with initial meetings in December and final wrap-up
meetings in the following September.
Experiential Learning
To deepen their understanding of community issues, each participant chooses a self-directed experience
and reflects upon its personal impact. This experience involves “Ride-alongs” with Victoria/Saanich/ Oak
Bay Police constables, with the alternative to job-shadow in a community-serving agency.
Team Coaching Support
Each Community Action Project Team is assigned an experienced coach who attends team meetings and
provides input on team process and development. The coach also liaises with other Program Committee
members to coordinate additional learning resources as required.
Core Program Facilitators
The Core Program is developed and facilitated by a group of qualified volunteers whose leadership
development experience ranges from the non-profit to the private sector. The curriculum is designed to
evolve so it is responsive to emerging community challenges and leadership issues. The facilitators
develop experiential and action-learning methods that include readings, simulations and scenarios to
ground the learning and make it effective.
Time Commitment
The Leadership Victoria Program is not a formal institutional experience. It is an intense, experiential
program that requires a commitment from every participant. As a result, there is an expectation that
participants will attend all of the learning events (Orientation, Residential Retreat and Community
Learning Days) and self-directed activities (recruitment fair in October and experiential learning in
January). In preparation for Community Learning Days, short self-study exercises or pre-readings may be
assigned. Reading or exercises are not graded.
In addition to the ten days of formal learning, participants will be committed to their Community Action
Plan project team. The team work and the frequency of team meetings will vary upon the needs of the
team and complexity of the team’s project. Generally teams will convene on a weekly basis as their
project develops.
We develop, support and celebrate leaders
who are passionately engaged in building a vibrant community
2013-14 Community Leadership Development Program participants and team coaches
Program Fees
Tuition for the program includes all components described above, including nutritious food during
organized sessions. Tuition for one seat is $3,000; employers sponsoring two or more seats receive a
reduced rate of $2,500. Tuition is payable upon acceptance to the program. Payment schedules may be
negotiated for individuals covering their own costs; please inquire with the Executive Director.
Limited bursaries are made possible by community partners of Leadership Victoria. If you would like to
apply for a bursary, please submit a letter indicating your request and providing an indication of your
financial need. Bursaries are awarded shortly after applications close (July 31, 2015).