Flora Stone Mather Center for Women: Staff Leadership Initiative: Program Description

WOMEN STAFF LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The Case Western Reserve University Women’s Leadership Development Institute (WSLDI) is a year-long program offering women professional staff an opportunity to enhance and energize leadership and career development skills through education, coaching, and the building of professional networks. The purpose of WSLDI is to provide a university-based resource and support system for women professional staff seeking to further their professional skills, including better communication, more collaboration, and the development of trust across university units, helping to create a synergy that promotes the university’s best practices. The Institute is designed to complement the supervisory development offerings provided by Human Resources. Intended to serve the needs of women in a supportive environment, the enrollment is limited to 12 participants per year.

Research has shown that women face particular challenges in the work environment. The Program is designed to address women’s issues and challenges within the context of the overall leadership curriculum. While many of the content can and does apply to men as well, we know from similar programs that programs for women that focus on the circumstances of women’s work lives within the overall context of work life are very beneficial to women.

WSLDI Session Summary (All meetings and sessions are mandatory)
Meeting time estimates*

Sessions	Time	Hours
General Orientation (Group) & Learning Styles Inventory (Lingham)	9:00 - 4:00 p.m.	7
Four WSOM Executive Education Classes (day-long)	9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.	30
Learning Styles Inventory (Dr. Tony Lingham)	9:00 a.m. - noon	3
Informal class meeting	noon-1:00 p.m.	1
Panel discussion with Community Women Leaders	11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.	2
Mid-year meeting with CWRU leaders and other classes (January)	11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.	2
Career Planning Workshop (Dr. Tom Matthews)	9:00 a.m. – noon	3
Two Case Studies Workshops	9:00 a.m. – noon	6
Wrap-up Session	11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.	2
TOTAL	5 days, 8 part-days	56

*We start in late August or early September and continue into June. This chart does not include the three one-to-one meetings with an executive coach, which are arranged individually and take about 1 ½ hours.

Readings:
We recommend the following book as a background to coaching sessions:
Becoming a Resonant Leader Annie McKee (Author), Richard E. Boyatzis (Author), Fran Johnston (Author)
Harvard Business School Press; (2008)

WSLDI GOVERNING BOARD

Deborah Bibb, Senior Director of Admissions, Weatherhead School of Management

Denise Douglas, Associate Dean, Executive Education, Weatherhead School of Management
Kathleen Dowdell, Administrator, Department of Anthropology, College of Arts and Sciences
Nora Hennessy, Assistant Associate Dean, Development & Alumni Relations, MSASS
Dorothy Miller, Director, Flora Stone Mather Center for Women
Kathleen O’Linn, Human Resources & Facilities Mgr., FBP School of Nursing
Tangela Scott-Jones, Administrator, Custodial Services
Wendy Shapiro, Senior Academic Technology Officer , ITS

Mitzi Vazquez-Long, Manager of Organizational Development & Learning, Human Resources

Application Deadline: June 3, 2013
NOTE: Applications are available online at: http://www.case.edu/provost/centerforwomen/staffleadership/wsldiapplication.html

Importance of Institute

This program helps to fulfill the university's strategic plan by promoting a seamless context of excellence and leadership in a collaborative atmosphere. The CWRU draft strategic plan calls for "highly collaborative and collegial functioning in an atmosphere characterized by support, mentoring, and inclusion." It also includes a focus on "distinctive opportunities for learning and discovery – both formal and informal" and the maximization of "student interactions with faculty and staff members." All of these goals are enhanced with the development of improved leadership skills for women professional staff across the campus.
Specifically, the program increases the numbers of women staff members with skills that enable better communication, more collaboration, and the development of trust across university units, which would create a synergy that promotes the university's best practices.
The program is intended to help the university retain talented staff and maximize the use of their skills in vital positions of responsibility.
The program helps to position the university as a leader in higher education, promoting diversity and leadership development, as well as cultivating a vibrant intellectual atmosphere.