Centennial Center for Leadership
2015-2016
Annual Report
A
fter eight remarkable years, the Centennial Center for Leadership has positioned itself as a point of pride for Hobart and William Smith Colleges. For the future, the CCL plans to deepen its impact and strategically build a portfolio of distinction in programming, research and scholarship. The CCL has the capacity to earn a national reputation as a premier leadership center that engineers meaningful change through innovative programming that is designed to study leadership and develop leaders. Over the course of this next academic year, CCL seeks to engage in conversations that will further its innovation, path future directions and realize new opportunities. Our questions would include but are not limited to the list below. 1. What should the CCL deliver to its internal and external constituents? 2. How can the growth of the CCL contribute to the growth of the Colleges? 3. How can we elevate the work of the CCL at the Colleges, regionally, and nationally? 4. How can the CCL maximize its resources more efficiently? 5. How can the CCL capitalize on new higher education trends? 6. How can the CCL position its students to be more professionally marketable? We hope you will engage in this conversation with us as our work could not be so without the generosity of our wonderful alumni base. Whether serving as a Pitch mentor or our Leader in Residence, your contributions to our growth have been so clear. We send our gratitude to all and thank you for your commitment to leadership development at HWS. The CCL is pleased to celebrate the 2015-2016 academic year with its friends and supporters. Sincerely, the Centennial Center for Leadership Staff
Leadership Showcase.
HWS Leads Now in its eighth year, the HWS Leads program continues to draw a diverse array of Hobart and William Smith students. Our spring 2016 cohort saw 24 new students join and we will be welcoming in an additional 26 this fall. These new voices offer unique perspectives that keep the quality of work in our certificate program strong and vibrant. The CCL has created a variety of new in-house leadership roles for students. As our cohorts continue to grow, we have integrated teaching assistants into our HWS Leads classes. In Fall 2015, we hired our first set of teaching assistants to serve in both the Leadership Theory I and Public Speaking Reader’s College courses. Current HWS Leads students Xena Pulliam ’16 and Jacque Kane ’18 served as TAs in the Fall 2015 semester, and Caroline Connor ’16 and Olivia Cargian ’18 served in the Spring 2016. The annual HWS Leads Certificate Ceremony and Leadership Showcase featured the Practicum work of our HWS Leads students. For the practicum component of the certificate program, students self-design a leadership project with significant responsibilities, unique opportunities and practical learning experiences. Below is a sampling of practicums presented at this year’s Leadership Showcase: • Facilitating the CCL’s Youth Leadership College - Dominique DeRubies ’17 and Sarah Friedman ’16 • Organizing the Colleges’ first Multicultural Networking Reception - Afrika Owes ’16 • Presenting Therapeutic Psychology Through Cooking - Maryum Raheem ’16 • Writing “At The Intersection of Storytelling and Leadership: Reimagining an Old Tradition for Modern Leaders” – Rachel Fischer ’16 Following the Leadership Showcase, faculty, students and staff gathered to recognize the 18 members of the Classes of 2016 who completed their HWS Leads Certificate. During the certificate ceremony, the CCL staff facilitated a Fishbowl discussion, a pedagogical method used in many of our Leads courses, which provided our seniors with a space to reflect on their experience in the program and a look towards how they’ll apply what they’ve learned in the future. Congrats to all of our graduates!
2
Centennial Center for Leadership Annual Report 2015-16
2016 Leadership Institute participants.
Leadership Institute Leadership Institute (LI) 2016 was a great success! The conference weekend brought together over 90 students from both HWS and Geneva High School. New this year, the CCL hired two student coordinators, Lucia Cardone ’16 and Ryan Mullaney ’16, to oversee the planning of LI. Together, Lucia and Ryan worked tirelessly during the fall semester to recruit LI participants, hire Home Group Leaders, secure presenters and organize the logistics. Lucia and Ryan were instrumental in the success of LI 2016. This year’s keynote speaker was Jonathan Berhanu, a Ph.D. candidate in Educational Policy Studies and Gender & Women Studies at the University of Wisconsin. The CCL first connected with Berhanu when he served as one of the lead trainers for the Colleges’ first Posse Plus retreat in 2014. Berhanu delivered his talk “From Hope to Action: College Student Activism and the Pursuit of a Just World” to a full audience. In his keynote, he explored the recent wave of protests on college campuses, taking a close look at how student activism is transforming the landscape of higher education. His talk included a discussion on the role that race, class, and sexual orientation plays in shaping student activism. His talk was a fitting kickoff Jonathan Berhanu opened the sixth annual for the conference weekend, which Leadership Institute with a keynote address titled, had embedded social justice themes “From Hope to Action: College Student Activism and within the leadership curriculum. the Pursuit of a Just World.”
30
Choose from more than leadership-themed workshops. Centennial Center for leadership
Leadership Institute January 16 – 18, 2016 Professional Conference Experience Applications due to the Centennial Center by:
Friday, Nov. 20. Applications are available on the CCL's CollegiateLink page: https://hws.collegiatelink.net/organization/ccl Follow us on Facebook for more details: https://www.facebook.com/CentennialCenterLeadership Questions? Comments? Email leadership@hws.edu
Visit us at: www.hws.edu/academics/leadership 3
Sophie Melvin ’18 “I can’t imagine what my life would be like if I hadn’t attended the Leadership Institute in my first year. LI changed the course of how I viewed my college experience; it gave me a sense of purpose and responsibility to lead my peers in critical dialogue, community engagement, and ally-ship. As a result, I immersed myself in the CCL and all it had to offer, from applying to the HWS Leads program to attending HWS Impact. I even became a Home Group Leader for my next Leadership Institute and was able to facilitate the life-changing conversations for my peers that I had participated in the previous year. The CCL is a special place, always full of special people that are constantly helping others find and define themselves within a leadership context. I owe the confidence and leadership skill sets I have today to the CCL and all the people I have encountered in their programs.”
LI 2016 also included a collection of impactful sessions facilitated by HWS faculty, staff, students, alums, and Geneva community members. Each year sessions deliver content for participants to reflect on, unpack and discuss during the Home Group experience. Designed to bring LI participants together, Home Groups are an integral part of the conference experience. LI student coordinators Lucia and Ryan crafted a new focus for the Home Group experience and equipped all Home Group Leaders with the skills necessary to facilitate meaningful, critical dialogue about local and global issues. This year’s Home Group Leaders included Danny Hastings ’16, Micaela Carney ’17, Clayton Lyons ’17, Sophie Melvin ’17, Vincent Creer ’17, Hannah Brooks ’17, Mary Kubinski ’17, Cody Rivera ’16, Dan Bristol ’18, Colleen Moore ’16, Caroline Connor ’16, Stephanie Kenific ’17, Ryan Densen ’17, and Rachel Fischer ’16. Their contributions to a successful conference cannot be overstated.
Cohen Fellowship Last year, the CCL awarded Cece Carsky–Bush ’16 and Olivia Hanno ’16 with $1,500 for the Steven Cohen ’67 Fellowship. The fellowship is awarded annually to support students by funding meaningful leadership projects. For her fellowship project, Olivia Hanno ’16, a psychology and Spanish double major with a minor in Latin American studies, completed research in Guatemala in coordination with Assistant Professor of Psychology Brien Ashdown. The two travelled to the Lake Atitlán region of Guatemala in the summer of 2015 where Olivia collected data for her research on the effectiveness of a sex education program at a vocational school in the local community. Olivia’s research in Guatemala served as the basis for her honors project, “Culture’s Role in Educational Goals: How Culture Dictates the Effectiveness of Sex Education in Rural Highland Guatemala.” Olivia has presented her research at a variety of national conferences, most recently at the annual conference of the Society for Cross-Cultural Research, which is a multi-disciplinary organization spanning the social sciences.
Olivia Hanno ‘16 (right) with Assistant Professor of Psychology Brien Ashdown.
Pictured first row far left, Cece Carsky–Bush ’16 at the William Smith Athletics Banquet.
4
Centennial Center for Leadership Annual Report 2015-16
Cece Carsky–Bush utilized her fellowship funds to organize the third annual “Out of the Darkness” campus walk at HWS. The walk raised awareness about suicide and worked to defeat the harmful stigmas around mental illness. Cece’s brother Alex passed in 2009 after taking his own life and since then Cece’s passion to engage in these critical issues has motivated her leadership work. As president of the Health Promotions Club, Cece spearheaded the organization and helped this year’s group surpass their fundraising goal, bringing in $12,807 in donations. All proceeds went to support the work of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. At this year’s William Smith Athletics Banquet, Cece was awarded the first ever Madeline Buckley ’15 award (Buckley is also a graduate of the CCL’s HWS Leads program). The award recognizes a William Smith student–athlete who best displays character, teamwork and citizenship. As member of the Heron’s Swimming and Diving Team, Cece was recognized for her leadership, strength, and compassion. To date, she has singlehandedly raised over $15,000 for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, a testament to her commitment for this cause and her leadership abilities.
International management consultant Lisa Goldman ’74 leads a discussion in Coxe Hall.
Leader in Residence
Visit us at:
The CCL’s Leader in Residence is typically a chance for students to interact with an alum who is an industry leader during a multi-day campus visit. This fall, Lisa Goldman ’74 joined us from October 20-23rd. During her time on campus, Lisa worked with more than 160 students within a variety of classes, luncheons, career session, the HWS IdeaLab and two full days of one-on-one consulting. As a global leadership consultant, Lisa brought a wealth of knowledge after nearly four decades of experience in strategic planning, marketing, sales and operations. Also an author and educator, Lisa was clearly passionate about working with college student leaders. During her three day visit, Lisa’s enthusiam for sharing career advice, providing professional insights and working closely with students who had entrepreneurial projects never waivered.
Facebook:
facebook.com/CentennialCenter
Twitter:
@HWSCCL
Instagram:
@hws.centennialcenter
“My return to HWS as Leader In Residence at the CCL was a much richer experience than I could have imagined,” said Lisa. “The students who choose to become part of the CCL are a breed apart on an already excellent campus. I found them to be articulate and world-wise. The CCL fills an extraordinary need on campus that allows students to bridge the gap between a thoughtful liberal arts education and the requirements of business. I was privileged to be able to contribute to students who were enthusiastic and eager to add to their professional skills.” Allison Magnarelli ’18 directs a question to Centennial Center for Leadership’s (CCL) Leader in Residence Lisa Goldman ‘74 during “Entrepreneurial Leadership,” a course taught by Associate Director of the CCL Amy Forbes.
5
HWS IdeaLab participants.
HWS IdeaLab
HWS IdeaLab Coming FALL 2015 IdeaLab Application Deadline Monday, Sept. 21 at 12 p.m. What is it?
The IdeaLab is a start-up accelerator program for products, services or organizations. It is designed to power up entrepreneurial ideas in six weeks.
IdeaLab Topics
The Challenge!
$1,000 in additional seedfunding to any student with an HWS IdeaLab proposal that makes the second round of The Pitch.
Who is eligible?
Any current HWS student can apply. All majors and levels of experience are welcome. The lab will take 8-10 students a semester.
Idea Creation
Problem-Solving & Product Design The Pitch Strategic Planning Cost Structure Target Audience & Market Analysis Sustainability
Each year ten students are selected to join the HWS IdeaLab, an early-stage entrepreneurial idea accelerator program. Serving as an effective feeder program into The Pitch contest, the HWS IdeaLab challenges students to assemble a unique idea by engaging them in a six-week workshop series, which is partly topic-led by alumni speakers and partly workshop for their projects. At the end of the workshop experience, a student selection committee in coordination with the CCL reviews student proposals and allocates $3,000 in seed funding to the most viable ideas. This year, the CCL offered a $1,000 cash prize to any IdeaLab participant that made the semi-final round of The Pitch. Five IdeaLab students made this year’s semi-final round. Three of those students were 2016 finalists in the contest.
What’s the Funding? There is a pool of $3,000. Our student committee will review proposals and allocate the funding.
Submit proposals online at hws.edu/leadership E-mail aforbes@hws.edu for more information
CENTENNIAL CENTER FOR LEADERSHIP
The fall 2015 HWS IdeaLab participants were Caroline Irvin ’17 who developed a gift box service; Zach Hoffman ’18 who founded a food truck; Laina Zissu ’16 who worked on a babysitting and personal assistance service; Nathaniel Robinson ’16 who was in music management; Jeff Rizza ’16 who had developed a plan for an aquaponics farm; Nicholas Hayden ’19 and Aaron Weitgenant ’19 who had co-created a pizza restaurant; Elizabeth Weingast ’18 who founded an athletic headband company; Chris Doak ’18 and Rotimi Adeoye ’18 who developed a political website; Matt Benton ’18 who created a device for efficient driving; and Rousseau Nutter ’16 who worked on a 3-D art sculpture gallery.
Elizabeth Weingast ’18, a 2016 Pitch contest finalist “I think that the IdeaLab is something really valuable that the CCL offers to students here at HWS. My idea probably would not have been able to make it into The Pitch without the experience of the IdeaLab. I learned so much from the alumni coming in to talk and from fellow entrepreneurs. It helped shape my idea of Band Together into what it is today. The Pitch opened a whole new door for me. I am now fully operating my own business, Band Together, and I owe that to the CCL. The IdeaLab and The Pitch opened my eyes to what it takes to actually get my idea going. It’s one thing to have an idea, it’s another to actually go out and make that idea into a reality. The Pitch and IdeaLab exposed me to the tools I needed to get Band Together up and running.”
6
Centennial Center for Leadership Annual Report 2015-16
Innovation Academy The Innovation Academy is an intensive five-day training in entrepreneurial leadership concepts such as marketing, innovation, idea generation, accounting and strategic planning that occurs over winter break. Faculty members from Hobart and William Smith Colleges, Cornell University, the University of Rochester and Syracuse University worked closely with students to further his or her idea in an interactive setting. Now in its third year, the Innovation Academy continues to make a mark on students with entrepreneurial ambitions. “The innovation academy is an intensive program that connects students with today’s innovation scholars and practitioners in a challenging and inviting environment,” said Craig Talmage, HWS’s new Visiting Professor of Entrepreneurial Studies. “Personally, I enjoyed seeing the students’ ’light bulb’ moments, where they realized they needed to pivot their ideas or they generated brand new ideas that could be translated into products or services. The Innovation Academy provides a one-on-one and group experience unlike the classroom. The academy gives students an intense, high value experience that ordinarily would be too high-cost in the private sector for them to access.” This year’s 2015 Innovation Academy participants were Matt Benton ’18; Ryan McNanus ’18; Justin Dennis ’18; Max Gorton ’16; Almamy Conde ’18; Madison Schmalz ’17; Lily Heath ’17; Nim Farhood ’18; Rousseau Nutter ’16; Elizabeth Weingast ’18; Tyler Niles ’16; and Frank Beatrice NJIT ’18. Given the strength of the program and the interest from student, the CCL plans to expand and offer the Innovation Academy to regional college students for an affordable fee. We will continue to staff the program with leading academics and entrepreneurial thinkers in the area. “The Innovation Academy is the best of its kind,” said Ed Russell, Associate Professor of Advertising at The Newhouse School, Syracuse University. “Bright students bring ideas of all kinds and interact one on one with distinguished professors and entrepreneurs, getting practical advice on everything from prototyping to marketing to the legal issues of starting your own business. The guidance is designed to help the students move from concept to reality in the marketplace as successfully as possible. With more and more students intent on creating and controlling their entrepreneurial future, the Innovation Academy is the perfect place to begin.”
I nnovatIon aCademy 2016
Centennial Center for leadership
Join us for the Innovation Academy 2016
JANUARY 11-15
The Innovation Academy is an intensive five-day training in entrepreneurial leadership concepts. Students will work closely with a variety of consulting
experts in a series of workshops designed to further the student’s entrepreneurial idea. Submit your application today!
What is it?
An intensive five-day training in entrepreneurial leadership concepts
Who will attend?
Regional college students who have an entrepreneurial idea
Do I have to have an idea?
Students with a solid idea will get the most out of the training
Does my idea have to be a business? Your idea can be a product, service or organization (for-profit or non-profit)
How can I register?
By returning a completed application with a description of your idea by
Monday, Jan. 4 at noon
(Spaces are limited)
What will I learn?
Entrepreneurial Leadership, Innovation Concepts, Idea Generation, Entrepreneurial Decision-making, Creating a Pitch, Cost Analysis, Negotiations Skills, Funding Strategies, Building a Brand, Implementation Strategies.
How much is the training?
$350 for the week including meals
Almamy Conde ’18, a 2016 Pitch contest finalist “My experience during the Innovation Academy was priceless. It was an amazing opportunity for my partners and I to process our ideas, learn legal information, marketing strategies, pitch presentations and other techniques to launch a new startup. The instructors and professors invited to the event were all professionals in their field of work. The staff does a great job teaching their students through in-group activities. Initially, my idea was just a dream, something I have been dreaming about for a couple of months. However, attending the academy gave me enough confidence to want to start my own business as a sophomore in college.”
7
The Stu Lieblein ’90 Pitch Contest After five years, The Stu Lieblein ’90 Pitch contest continues to be an opportunity for new entrepreneurial leaders to showcase their abilities to innovate. Over the years, 145 students have participated in The Pitch. We have received and reviewed 91 proposals from individuals as well as teams. Additionally, 45 faculty, staff and local entrepreneurs have served on the selection committee. Also, 38 alums have served as mentors and 17 alums have joined us as judges. The Pitch is truly a community effort.
Matthew Benton ’18
Almamy Conde ’18
We had a record number of 19 proposals for the contest this year. A selection committee of faculty, staff, alums and local entrepreneurs had the challenge of narrowing the field to semi-finalists. With ideas from political websites to wave energy devices, student founders continue to prove that HWS is becoming an exciting hub for entrepreneurial thinkers. Semi-finalists included Brett Friedberg ’18; Laina Zissu ’16; Ryan McManus ’18, Eric Brady ’16, Alex Williams ’16; Chris Doak ’18; Oluwaduroti Adeoye ’18; Jeff Rizza ’16; Elizabeth Weingast ’18; Matt Benton ’18; and Almamy Conde ’18. One of the most compelling components of The Pitch contest is the opportunity for students to be mentored by an alum who has industry knowledge in their project’s field. Alums work with semi-finalists as they revise and strengthen proposals before resubmitting to the selection committee.
For finalists, The Pitch is a six-month experience in entrepreneurial leadership. This year, finalists Almamy Conde ’18, Matt Benton ’18, Elizabeth Weingast ’18 and Jeff Rizza ’16 were selected for the last round. They worked with the CCL staff to prepare for the March 3rd Pitch event where they presented their ideas. We had an exceptional Jeff Rizza ’16 Elizabeth Weingast ’18 judging panel that included Dan Chessin ’84, co-president and CEO of Hahn Automotive Warehouse in Rochester, N.Y.; Chris Desino ’94, Founder and Owner of Wellington Equestrian Realty and Ocala Horse Properties; Sabrina Horn ’83, Managing Partner, Technology Practice Leader at Finn Partners; and Pitch Mentors Amy L. Ziff ’92, CEO and Founder of Nontoxic Certified. • JD Sawyer, Founder of Colorado Aquaponics “As a judge on The Pitch, I was completely impressed by the caliber of the business plans and presentations of each contestant,” said Sabrina Horn ’83. “And you could • Bill Glaab ’06, Founder of Hand really see the quality of the instruction, guidance, and coaching that HWS students in Hand Soap
8
•
Adam Chaput ’07, Director, Product Management at Wayfair
•
Tim Heekin, Former Co-Director of Trading at Thomas Weisel Partners Group
•
Jeff Werner ’91, General Manager, International and Public Policy
•
Rich Barlette ’01, Senior Manager, External Affairs, NYISO
•
Jim Mastrianni ’94, Creator the Lake George Boater’s Directory
•
Joe DeSimone, Jr., Broker and Owner of First Federal Realty.
President Mark D. Gearan welcomes the audience and the four alum judges to the fifth installment of the Stu Lieblein ’90 Pitch Contest.
Centennial Center for Leadership Annual Report 2015-16
Jeffrey Rizza ’16 is presented with the top prize, a $10,000 grant, by President Mark D. Gearan, Stu Lieblen ’90, and Sabrina Horn ’83. Rizza will use the money to fund the start-up costs of “Future Farms.”
received from the faculty in the process. It is evident that HWS is turning out the next generation of the world’s best entrepreneurs and business leaders, and is fostering the spirit of entrepreneurship within its curriculum and academic mission.” Pitch supporter Stu Lieblein was also impressed. “When we first began The Stu Lieblein ’90 Pitch Contest, the idea was to add the entrepreneurial skill set to the Liberal Arts education. The program has turned out to be better than the Centennial Center for Leadership and I could ever have imagined. Not only have the number of proposals increased but both winners and runner-ups have continued to pursue their businesses as real life forms while generating actual income. At President Gearan’s house last March, I was asked to share my epiphany with faculty, students, alumni, and judges. That epiphany was that our goal for future Pitch students is to create their own jobs in their own companies upon graduation. We are on our way.”
The judges included Sabrina Horn ’83, managing partner and technology practice leader at Finn Partners; Dan Chessin ’84, co-president and CEO of Hahn Automotive Warehouse; Amy Ziff ’92, CEO and founder of Nontoxic Certified; and Chris Desino ’94, founder and owner of Wellington Equestrian Realty.
Jeffrey Rizza ’16, Pitch 2016 contest winner “The CCL staff was very helpful. It was apparent that everyone in the CCL was really interested and invested in all of our individual endeavors. I think the most important thing they helped me with was finding the right blend of my underlying passion for my idea and its viability as a business. There was a period of time during The Pitch where the presentation of my idea began to stray from what I really wanted it to be to what I was really passionate about. After presenting it to a few people in the CCL, I realized I was trying to tailor it too much to what I thought the judges would like. Going back to my original thinking was the right thing to do!”
To learn more about The Pitch, visit www.hws.edu/academics/ leadership/pitch.aspx
9
Craig Talmage, visiting assistant professor of Entrepreneurial Studies, with his “Economics Principles” class.
Entrepreneurial Studies With the newly approved Entrepreneurial Studies minor, we expect entrepreneurship to continue to grow at HWS. It is an exciting time with the development of new courses, more programming, a downtown incubator space and a speaker series for the coming years. We want to thank the community members who have steered these new initiatives. We look forward to working with the minor program so that we can provide more opportunities for student learning. “HWS launched a new minor in Entrepreneurial Studies in the fall of 2015,” said Thomas Drennen, Professor of Economics, Chair of Entrepreneurial Studies minor. “In its first year, 62 students officially declared minors in Entrepreneurial Studies, making it one of the largest minors on campus. Staff from CCL were integral in developing and launching the new minor and much of the programming offered by CCL provides students in Entrepreneurial Studies with opportunities to develop the skills they need to launch entrepreneurial ventures. This broad range of co-curricular programming will help Entrepreneurial Studies grow and thrive as an academic program at Hobart and William Smith Colleges.”
HWS Hackathon The CCL introduced a new program this year called the HWS Hackathon. Hackathons are events designed to innovate new ideas that address complex problems. Hackathons originated in the technology field and have slowly been applied to new spaces like social innovation. They are fast-paced, high energy and produce ideas that are intended to address challenges, transform communities, improve systems and create products or services that change the way we interact with our world, communities, and with each other. Prior to the event, the CCL selected a topic based on a complex local or global issue with input from the HWS community. Participants entered as a team of 3 or 4 or as an individual who was placed on a team. On Saturday morning, we revealed food security would be the topic that participants had to hack. Teams had 24 hours to create an idea that addressed or helped to solve challenges associated with food security. Teams heard from keynote Per Pinstripe-Anderson, Professor Emeritus at Cornell University who is a global expert in food security. They also engaged with roundtable experts from the local region who
10 Centennial Center for Leadership Annual Report 2015-16
Roundtable Experts
Gathered in the Vandervort Room, 18 teams of students, faculty and staff pose for a photo while participating in the first annual Hackathon. Teams were tasked with developing an idea that addressed a complex local and global issue and were given 24 hours to “hack” the issue.
reported on the many dimensions of food security such as agriculture, legal challenges, nutrition and poverty. “This year I had the pleasure of being the CCL’s intern,” said Jessica Bishop ’16. “We wanted to hold an event that involved students, faculty and staff and provided a forum to foster creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship. By choosing food security as the 2016 topic, we were able to include local experts in the weekend’s events who provided much of the information on food security in Geneva and Finger Lakes region. As the intern, I would have to say that the most rewarding part of the weekend was that the Hackathon provided a place where many local experts were able to connect with each other. I also heard new and innovative ideas from the participants of the HWS community.” Teams returned on Sunday to outline their idea in a pitch presentation to a panel of judges. Judges awarded a $500 prize to a first place winner and a $200 prize to two runners up. It was clear that the healthy competition brought out the best in participants. “HWS social innovators hacking the same challenges I faced in my role as Public Health Commissioner was both inspirational and humbling,” said judge Jeremy T. Cushman ’96, M.D. Associate Professor and Chief, Division of Prehospital Medicine, University of Rochester. “The breadth and depth of ideas, crafted from research, dialogue, and personal experiences were extremely well articulated and reflected the amazing diversity of experience and thought on our campus. Judging was difficult, as every proposal had tremendous relevance and opportunity to affect change, but in the end I think we all won having been a part of such a wonderful intellectual event to identify solutions for such a difficult social, cultural, and economic challenge.” CCL looks forward to bringing the Hackathon back next year.
Stu Einstein, Community Lunch Program Coordinator, Catholic Charities of the Finger Lakes Glenda Neff, Coordinator, Farm to Institution New York State, a statewide initiative spearheaded by American Farmland Trust New York Teresa Shaffer, Lead Poisoning Prevention, Maternal Child Health, Ontario County Public Health Patty Dhondt-Campbell, RD, CDN Dietitian, Nutrition Services Coordinator Ontario County Office for the Aging Natalie Knott, Staff Attorney, Legal Assistance of Western New York, Inc. Cailin Kowalewski, Nutrition and Consumer Science Team Coordinator, Cornell Cooperative Extension (Wayne County) Joe Zerby, Organic Farmer
Hackathon Judges Jeremy T. Cushman ’96, M.D. Associate Professor and Chief, Division of Prehospital Medicine, University of Rochester; Commissioner of Health, Monroe County Department of Public Health EMS; Medical Director, Monroe County, City of Rochester, and Monroe Livingston EMS System Sage Gerling, Director of Neighborhood Initiatives, City of Geneva Drury MacKenzie ’03, Program Manager on the smart grid planning and programs team for AVANGRID
Rotimi Adeoye ’18, Ryan Montbleau ’19 and John Hassett ’18 pose for a photo after winning the Centennial Center for Leadership’s first annual Hackathon. The Hackathon gives teams of students, faculty and staff 24 hours to generate an idea that addresses or helps solve a local or global issue. This spring marked the inaugural program.
11
Vincent Creer ’17 “I have been involved with The Centennial Center for Leadership since my freshman year, and the office has served as a site of growth, care, and character building for me. This past spring, I sharpened those qualities by facilitating the Youth Leadership College at the Boys and Girls Club. We watched these kids grow from timid, students to bold, young leaders. Chief among the rewarding activities we facilitated during this leadership series was the public service announcement addressing LGBT bullying in schools. During an unexpected, yet thoughtful discussion during our fifth session, many students in the leadership series revealed the awful amount of violent and unreprimanded bullying that happens towards LGBT-identified and perceived students in Geneva’s middle and high schools. It was tragic to hear about these instances but it was amazing to watch these students feel comfortable enough to talk about such sensitive issues in a space I helped create.”
Dominique DeRubeis ’18, 2016 Youth Leadership College coordinator “The Youth Leadership College program has not only allowed me to help members of surrounding communities learn about leadership, but has also helped me reach my own maximum potential while at college, allowing me to feel productive beyond the classroom. Like many participants in the CCL programming, I applied to an in-house leadership opportunity because I was itching to get involved with the communities beyond HWS and see the issues our next-doorneighbors are having. I don’t hesitate to say that I’ve gained more than I’ve given through the CCL, and I think that is what the programs are about. People find their passions through the CCL and discover what they want to do for the rest of their lives or even as short-term as the next ten years. I want to employ the tools that I have learned in the classroom to benefit society.”
Youth Leadership College Now in its fourth year, the Youth Leadership College (YLC) continues to serve the local Geneva community by offering leadership development opportunities to elementary aged students. Designed as a series of leadership workshops, the program is led by two HWS students who engage West Street elementary students in a three-part leadership curriculum. This year’s coordinators, Sarah Friedman ’16 and Domnique Derubeis ’18 personalized the curriculum (originally developed by Caroline Dosky ’12, MAT ’13) and produced highly interactive content that incorporated movement education and role-play. 43 West Street students participated in the program, which is the largest group to date. In a culminating event, Sarah and Dominique organized the certificate ceremony that parents attended where each second grader was recognized for completing the program. “The Youth Leadership program was an amazing opportunity,” said coordinator Sarah Friedman ’16. “I was in the education program at William Smith and am continuing on to get my Masters of Arts in Teaching this fall with dualcertification in Elementary and Special Education. The YLC allowed me to continue my work with children in a very different way than the typical math and English portions of the curriculum. Being a future educator, this program allowed me to work with a group of kids every Friday morning and be fun, energetic, and engaging. I am very grateful that I got the opportunity to be a YLC coordinator and work with the Centennial Center for Leadership on this amazing project.” New to YLC this year was a leadership development program offered at the Boys and Girls Club of Geneva. This program drew from various forms of artistic expression and was led by Vincent Creer ’17, Niame Traore ’18, Molly Dietrich ’17 and Taylor Goryiki ’18. The program coordinators met with teens from the Boys and Girls Club throughout the semester to lead workshops on various leadership concepts surrounding the CCL’s signature model, which focuses on self, others, and action. For their final leadership project, the Boys and Girls Club youth were tasked with developing a public service announcement on a critical issue in their community. Drawing from their own experiences, the young leaders decided to address the issue of bullying faced by LBTQ students at their school.
Beyond Borders Every Wednesday at 11:30 a.m., students gathered at the CCL for critical discussions on global issues ranging from gender-based violence to gentrification. Despite the difficult nature of many of these topics, HWS students in the Beyond Borders program come prepared to engage in difficult conversations, consider a different worldview and interrogate global power structures with peers across the Atlantic. By constructing a truly global classroom, Beyond Borders is preparing students to be active citizens and leaders who can learn from and collaborate with people from a different geographical and cultural context.
12 Centennial Center for Leadership Annual Report 2015-16
What distinguishes the Beyond Borders program from other comparative courses on campus is the presence of South African students in the classroom. Through videoconferencing software, students from Stellenbosch University participated alongside HWS students where they problematized western culture conceptions of Africa and offered more accurate accounts of conditions surrounding life in South Africa. By examining topics that included xenophobia, development, foreign aid, and police brutality (among others), students explored the issues through a comparative lens, weaving in and out of geographical locations. To complement their weekly dialogues, HWS students also embarked on an independent study and dove deeper into one of the eight issues explored in the program. Each student was paired with a faculty advisor who guided them through the production of a comparative research paper. For students like Ato Bensti-Enchill, their research projects culminated with an opportunity to present at a student conference. “I am particularly proud of the work I put into my independent study titled, ‘The Black-White Achievement Gap,’ which I also presented during the Senior Symposium.” Ato said. “Months of research into American and South African histories and the vestiges of slavery and apartheid respectively culminated in a 28 page paper that examined the cause of the disparity in educational achievement between blacks and whites in two distinct countries; one majority white with blacks having the highest poverty rate, and one majority black with the majority of black people in low socio-economic standing.”
Centennial Center for leadership
Are you a JUNIOR or SENIOR interested in: Working with a peer from an international school? Examining global issues? Developing sustainable solutions? Learning about international development? If so, then you should consider enrolling in the Centennial Center for Leadership’s Global Leadership Program in Spring 2016.
Beyond Borders is a semester-long program designed as an independent study for juniors and seniors.
To learn more, come out to the interest meeting.
Wednesday
Sept. 30, 2015 12:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m.
Centennial Center for Leadership 603 South Main St. Light refreshments will be served. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Solomé Rose at srose@hws.edu.
In addition to the academic benefits that such a program affords our students, Beyond Borders also impacts students’ personal development as global citizens. As Tafadza Gurupira, a Stellenbosch student, notes: “The Beyond Borders program helped me gain more knowledge and a better understanding of various (global) issues. This has helped me not only shape my thought patterns but also churn a desire in me to be a more responsible and active citizen. Analysis of the similarities and differences in which some challenges manifest in different social groupings also put me in a better position to understand people from different backgrounds. I found the experience beneficial because I believe it is imperative that we complement academic qualifications with an understanding of how the world works and where our social responsibilities come in.” To culminate this year’s program, HWS students will be traveling to South Africa for a ten-day educational trip to further contextualize many of the issues explored. Students in the program will have an opportunity to meet face-to-face and continue much of the discussions from the past semester. Part of the aim of this program is to foster linkages between the north and south among future change agents, and while the technology serves us well in establishing those relationships, nothing can replace human interaction.
This year’s Beyond Borders students included Kimberly Gutierrez, ’17, Susannah Berry ’16, Molly Dietrich ’17. Ato Bentsi-Enchill ’17, Ryan Mullaney ’16, Mary Kubinski ’17 and Domenic Merolla ’16. Faculty advisors included Khuram Hussain, Ervin Kosta, Charlie Temple, Justin Rose, Elizabeth Thornberry, Kevin Dunn and Christopher Annear.
Ryan Mullaney ’16 “Beyond Borders provided me a chance to critically examine and compare a wide variety of policy concerns in the US and South Africa. It allowed me to draw from the knowledge I developed in other courses while applying it to a new region and learning new content. The ability to directly dialogue with South Africa students in class and via one-on-one Skype sessions adds a level of interpersonal and academic depth to the course unparalleled in other programs... As a recent graduate, it was one of the most rewarding programs I was ever a part of while at the Colleges.”
13
Faculty Advisory Board The CCL is fortunate to work with a dynamic group of faculty who serve on our Faculty Advisory Board (FAB). The FAB members have been invaluable sounding boards as well as thought partners over the academic year. Members include:
Lisa Cleckner
Brien Ashdown
Meghan Brown
Assistant Professor of Psychology
Associate Professor of Biology
Director, Finger Lakes Institute
Thomas Drennen
Brandi Ferrara
Jack Harris
Professor of Economics
Director, Salisbury Center for Career, Professional and Experiential Learning
Professor of Anthropology and Sociology
Clifton Hood
Ervin Kosta
Professor of History
Assistant Professor of Anthropology and Sociology
Jim MaKinster Professor of Education
14 Centennial Center for Leadership Annual Report 2015-16
Kirin Makker Assistant Professor of Art and Architecture
Cadence Whittier Associate Professor of Dance
Upcoming Programs Leadership Scholars The CCL will offer inaugural scholarships for incoming students in the classes of 2021. Scholarships will offer an opportunity for students to gain experience and expertise in leadership by participating in CCL programs, receiving mentorship and connecting with a cohort of fellow students. The CCL welcomes student applicants from all high school backgrounds and academic interests who are interested in exploring leadership. Scholars will have access to all CCL programs and be expected to participate in at least two their first year and one each of their following three years. Scholars will mentor the next incoming scholars their second year. Scholars will also meet once a semester as a cohort to build community and discuss critical issues on campus. This new program is in development and in partnership with Admissions.
Student Leadership Research Interns The CCL is committed to fostering the study of leaders and leadership at HWS. The CCL is offering 4 inaugural student leadership research internships through the Geneva Collaborative Internship Program (GCIP) for the 2016-2017 academic year. Internships offer an opportunity for students to gain experience and expertise in leadership studies by designing research, participating in dialogue and possibly coauthoring articles for publication. Nim Farhood ’18, Elizabeth Weingast ’18, Saoirse Scott ’19 and Molly Dietrich ’17 will start in the fall as our research internship cohort. They will explore leadership theory and study topics that include global leadership, psychology, social justice, entrepreneurial leadership and organizational theory. Professor Jim MaKinster in the Education Department will sponsor the interns and evaluate their work in coordination with the CCL.
15
Centennial Center for Leadership 603 South Main Street Geneva, N.Y. 14456 twitter.com/HWSCCL www.facebook.com/CentennialCenterLeadership Phone: (315) 781-4550
www.hws.edu/leadership