The Weekly LEADer!

I spend most of my professional time focused on various issues related to higher education. Sometimes, that translates into conversations with elected officials advocating infrastructure funding as critical to the health of our aging campuses and their young occupants. By contrast, often I find myself discussing with parents the importance of maintaining balance between academics and extra-curriculars as their daughters navigate that first year away from home.

This week, I realized that I’ve inadvertently constructed a bubble around myself as I have become increasingly immersed in the issues facing our students. If you’ve read our student blog, then you will know that Brescia is again participating in the annual United Way Campaign for London-Middlesex. This year, the United Way has focused on three priorities, including the issue of poverty. As part of Brescia’s launch of our internal campaign, one of the United Way’s staff members gave a presentation on the 2010 Campaign. At that moment, the full extent of my bubble, constructed over my past two years at Brescia, became obvious.

Did you realize that 25% of the childhood population of London-Middlesex lives below the poverty line? Now, if we were talking about Haiti or Kenya, this would come as no surprise to me. But London, Ontario? I was stunned. We are talking about children, in this city of ours, whodo not get enough to eat….children who do not have shoes to wear to school…children who do not have warm coats as we head into winter. We are talking about thousands of children in this city alone.

I can’t get this out of my head. As critical as the work that we do in higher education is, it brings some perspective when I think about the reality of people walking the same streets as I walk every day. As has been said many times, statistics can be manipulated to support whatever argument we wish to advance…but how can there be any other interpretation of that data than to see that we are desperately failing in meeting the most basic needs of our community?

Perhaps being a mother of young children serves to sear this into my consciousness further. Our three have every single necessity of life plus a whole layer of other ‘non-essential’ resources that help them to succeed. Not only can they expect breakfast every morning…but a nutritionally balanced, and delicious, breakfast with lots of vitamin C and fiber! Not only shoes…but warm and functional boots for when the snow flies. The list goes on.

I learned something last week about keeping my own work in perspective. I believe it is important work that I am privileged to be able to do and I will continue to believe that. But I have now been reminded that there are other needs in our community equally or more pressing that must somehow be addressed. Whether that means supporting United Way or similar appeals with our time, talent, and treasure or working at a grass-roots level advocating for change – we must find opportunities for leadership that will ensure positive change. And, note to self, we must resist the urge to become consumed with our own realities, losing sight of the bigger landscape around us.

admin | Uncategorized | 11 10th, 2010 | No Comments »

Many of you may have seen or heard about the new signage posted on Sarnia Road at the southern edge of Brescia’s campus. It included a photograph of one of our recent graduates, wearing her cap and gown with the caption “Her mind is as sharp as her heels.” I’d love to report that the feedback to this message was universally positive, but that has not been the case. Instead, while we received a tremendous amount of positive feedback, especially from our intended audience of students and potential students in the 18-24 year age range, there was a sizeable amount of very unhappy response to this signage.

I have had many conversations about this sign – in person, on the phone, via e-mail and even on /A\ Channel News in London – and its place in our current recruitment campaign at Brescia. People whom I deeply respect have expressed to me that this message has offended them. Some report it having created a feeling of physical violence through the juxtaposition of sharp heels and brains. For others, it trivializes the impact of Brescia’s educational mission by making light of the Brescia experience and the Brescia student. For still others, it enforces historical gendered stereotypes about women, femininity, and intellect.

Some of the most vocal opponents have suggested to me that this sign has the effect of excluding some women from what is being promoted as the “Brescia experience.” It could be interpreted to suggest that anyone who is not fashionable, beautiful, or image-conscious has no place at Brescia. It was this last interpretation that has led me to write about this in a public blog.

Over the two years since my arrival here, I have come to learn that “Brescia” and the “Brescia experience” are defined in countless ways by different people. What remains important to remember is that each definition, assuming it is made in good faith, is equally authentic and valuable. When a young alumna explains to me, patiently, that this sign is too lighthearted and ‘does not speak to my experience at Brescia,’ there is a temptation to quickly remove the subject of such offense. However, upon reflection, I realize that I have observed a variety of unique and arguably contrary versions of what the Brescia experience is.

In the past year, Brescia has hosted a number of speakers who would clearly define themselves as activists – social, political, or even spiritual. Take for example, Dr. Samantha Nutt, the founder of War Child Canada who spoke at last year’s Breakfast for Bursaries about her work with women and children in war zones around the world. We also heard from Sheila Watt-Cloutier last fall about her attempts to draw political attention to the plight of the Innu in the Arctic Circle that results from our blatant disregard for the environment. In the spring, we had a rousing talk from Globe and Mail correspondent Stephanie Nolen, detailing her lessons on the impact of AIDS on women in Africa.

At Brescia, we have a variety of academic and other programs that support girls and women in our community. Whether you talk about our amazing Girls LEAD summer camp, just expanded this summer to the Caribbean or our Take the Lead public speaking contest for young women in grades 11 and 12 or our Brescia Bright Futures bursary program that targets incoming students from the surrounding Southwestern Ontario region who have been so hard hit by the recent economic downturn, these programs are all doing some excellent work and speaking to what a Brescia experience can deliver.

For some of our students, the most memorable part of their Brescia experience has been playing flag football on the BUC team or volunteering in a school breakfast program in vulnerable area neighbourhoods. In my first year at Brescia, I was invited to attend a Mary Kay cosmetics party being hosted by one of our students. While I’m not much for make-up, it did remind me that some of our students are quite taken by the more glamorous dimensions of their femininity. Similarly, having now attended two of the annual Brescia Ball events hosted by our students’ council, complete with the coronation of a Queen and Junior Princess of the Ball, it is clear to me that many of our students enjoy very much the combination of glamour and intellect. It was that combination that our sign was intended to play with, in a light-hearted manner.

If we allow ourselves to limit the definition of “Brescia” or the “Brescia experience,” we run the risk of impoverishing our dialogues. When I explained to one woman this past week that, in fact, there had been some strongly positive feedback to our signage coming from some current students and young alumnae, her response was that these women were “obviously unenlightened.”  When did it become acceptable for one of us to judge a contrary view to our own as ‘unenlightened’? In fact, my sense remains that those who responded positively to this sign did so because it evoked in them a familiarity with their own views of women and feminism as allowing for both an emphasis on women’s strength and intellect and a nod to the desire for glamour and some more traditional images of femininity.

Rather than suggesting that any thinking, enlightened person could only see that message as distorted, stereotypical, and offensive,  could we not instead see that the Brescia experience is in fact very unique to each woman whom we serve and that no experience is in any way ‘less than’ another experience, however that is expressed?

At Brescia, we are beginning to emerge from a challenging period of shrinking enrolment fuelled by various factors, including inaccurate views within the broader community of what Brescia is all about. To support a more accurate sense of our school, we need to show the many faces of the Brescia experience in a way that manages to be inclusive in its diversity. We need to support the different ways in which our students, prospective students, and alumnae view themselves as women. And I also believe that we need to maintain our collective sense of humour, whenever possible!

After many conversations revolving around this sign, it was decided that the advantages being achieved by our recruitment campaign were at risk of being overshadowed by the fact that some members of our community were feeling excluded and offended. It was decided that this sign would be removed earlier than planned, and replaced with a message that is less likely to trigger such divided responses. That has now taken place. It has become very clear to me that the Sarnia Road location, on Brescia’s property, is especially meaningful to our community, so we must take greater care to ensure that anything displayed there will resonate more broadly.

Although this has been a challenging situation to be sure, I am gratified by the extreme lengths to which members of our community will go to have their voices heard. There is a deep love of Brescia that has animated this dialogue and that continues to drive our community. There is no doubt in my mind that we are witnessing some amazing leadership around this issue from many corners of our community that can only be described as being bold – Brescia BOLD.  It is a privilege to be connected to a community of this passion and commitment.

admin | community | 09 30th, 2010 | 10 Comments »

An Irish proverb tells us that “if you do not sow in the spring, you will not reap in the autumn.” At Brescia, we have had a very fruitful spring and summer and now find ourselves sharing in a bountiful autumn harvest.

On Wednesday, September 15, 2010, Brescia launches its five-year strategic plan, Living Leadership 2010-2015, and it represents the committed labour of many hands (and minds) with a shared love of Brescia. The result is an ambitious road map that recognizes our need for enrolment growth while maintaining the Ursuline values that have animated our school for over 90 years.

In this Plan, we see a focus on continuing to foster innovation in teaching, learning and research, and an emphasis on Brescia confirming its identity as Canada’s leadership destination for women wanting to make a difference in the world around them. This Plan also recognizes our need to expand and renew our physical plant, identifying in particular the need to build a new 300-bed student residence with dining pavilion and an integrated Food Laboratory Complex that will consolidate Brescia’s Food and Nutritional Sciences program into one place with four cutting-edge laboratories. This Plan, in typical Brescia fashion, includes also a continued emphasis on community – our student community, our alumnae community and, of course, the broader community in which Brescia is located.

I am delighted with this new Plan as it is the result of a year of planning, of planting seeds, and watching the many directions in which they grow. It will stretch our resources and energy in many ways over the coming years, but will surely result in an even stronger, bolder Brescia.

As the cooler days of autumn begin to arrive and we celebrate this season of harvest and thanksgiving, I am so grateful to belong to a community that steps boldly into its future while keeping its past firmly in mind.

admin | community | 09 13th, 2010 | No Comments »

I had every intention of shelving this blog during the summer months, trying instead to deal with the large pile of ‘stuff’ that managed to accumulate during the academic term, waiting to be addressed until the summer when most of our students are away and the pace allows for some deeper reflection.

That was my intention; however, some opportunities simply cannot be missed! Many of you will know that Brescia has been running a girls’ summer leadership camp, Girls LEAD, here in London for several years (www.girlslead.ca). This incredible program was the brainchild of one of our students, Kate Bryant, an amazing leader whom I had the pleasure of watching graduate this past June.

About one year ago, we decided it was time to start thinking of expanding this camp internationally with a view to sharing with other girls and young women the wisdom and experience that we have developed over the years. This past year has included a flurry of activity as we considered various locations and logistics. It didn’t take us long to settle on Barbados as the first location for Girls LEAD International. Brescia has a longstanding relationship with Barbados, as with other countries in that region, and we had no trouble in finding local sponsors there who were willing to get in on the ‘ground floor’ of what they saw to be a great opportunity.

So, for the first two weeks of July, Brescia’s International Program Co-ordinator travelled to Barbados with three of our students who had been selected to serve as our Camp Co-ordinator and Counsellors, and Girls LEAD International was born! We had the pleasure of welcoming four Junior Counsellors and 22 campers to our camp that was held at Ursuline Convent Schools in Bridgetown. The results of bringing this group of girls and young women together were simply amazing to behold! The cultural interchange was among the highlights for sure.

Some days, my job is even more fulfilling than most days and last Friday, July 16 was a day I will not soon forget. I was able to attend the closing showcase (called “Open Day”) of Girls LEAD in Barbados and to meet an entire gaggle of 10 – 12 year-old campers, each of whom was raving about her experience over the previous two weeks! The Barbados media was out in full force to watch these campers put on skits, sing songs and recite poetry about leadership, healthy nutrition and positive friendships. Our amazing sponsors (Barbados National Bank, Summit Bank and Trident Insurance) were on hand to receive our gratitude and it was a wonderful, warm afternoon.

The sunburn has not yet faded from the tip of my nose and already we are very focused on next steps with this camp…I’m not sure where Girls LEAD International will go from here, but I do know that it will continue to nurture and model leadership not only for the future leaders of London but far beyond our city limits!

Brescia Bold: Choose to Lead!

admin | leadership | 07 26th, 2010 | 2 Comments »

When I think of philanthropy, I think of charitable donations to support a cause with which you are aligned. In my experience, philanthropy has taken on various ‘shapes’, ranging from the standard monetary donation to a charity of your choice, to participating in golf tournaments or gala dinners, or bidding on dates with interesting single men or women at silent auctions  (different, I know!).  What all of these approaches required was simple: a list of participants with sufficient disposable income to contribute in support of the cause. The challenge with that model has been that it does not allow for participation and contribution by those who might not have much in the way of disposable income. A dilemma…

And then along comes our millennial generation with their amazing capacity to think outside the box! The result? The United Way of London and Middlesex has launched GenNext with the intention of “mobilizing our generation through involvement, awareness, and giving”. GenNext is hosting TimeRaiser 2010 on May 13, 2010 at Club Mansion in London, an art auction where participants “bid” with volunteer hours that they will donate to local charities of their choice. Is that not an amazing idea? The participants have an evening to meet and mingle and they can go home with some great art (all donated by local artists) and a new commitment to a local organization that will benefit from their time. This is how we build a spirit of philanthropy, one philanthropist at a time!

I have spent the past two years growing increasingly amazed at the community commitment that Brescia students demonstrate throughout their time with us. It is not unusual for one of our students to hold down two or more volunteer commitments in addition to her studies and, often, some paid work to help with the bills. It is clear to me that Brescia women see themselves as leaders, with something important to offer the community around them. It makes me very proud to be able to continue to support these emerging leaders through mentoring, academic courses, non-academic courses, and good example!

I am very curious to hear how TimeRaiser 2010 goes on May 13^th – if I were a betting person, my wager would be that this concept will be very popular with our Millennials! It will be the perfect opportunity to combine friendship, networking, philanthropy, and an appreciation for fine art! Let me know how it goes (http://www.gennextuw.ca).

admin | community | 04 30th, 2010 | No Comments »

Some days, it’s really great to be the Principal around here! Some days, it is less great to be the Principal, but I’ll leave that for another blog! J As the academic year draws to a close, Brescia kicked off this period of celebrating our graduates with our inaugural Graduation Breakfast on March 31. This event attracted more than 75 of our students who are expecting to graduate in a few short weeks, and we enjoyed their company over a hot breakfast and plenty of coffee.

Sitting there, I was drawn back to my own experience, living the final weeks of my undergraduate experience at St. Michael’s College at the University of Toronto. I had been heavily involved in all that St. Mike’s had to offer, from Student Council to facilitating Orientation and so on. I distinctly recall feeling overwhelmed and excited…the kind of excited that borders on anxiety as the future expands before you. I’d had a wonderful experience but, to be quite frank, I was ready for a change. I needed a break from the people and the routines and from what had become somewhat monotonous. I was ready to lunge into the next phase in my life. Approaching graduation, I was cocky enough to recognize the impact that I believed I’d had on St. Mike’s, but not nearly as aware of the phenomenal impact that St. Mike’s had had on me!

Until I left.

You see, I was a very different woman from the one who had arrived four years earlier. It took me a bit of time and a bit of distance to recognize that I was surer of myself, that I had adopted new directions and passions, and that I had greater confidence in what I hoped to achieve in my life. And I had some plans!

In the year following my graduation, I returned to campus for St. Mike’s version of Homecoming and I was overwhelmed by my good memories and by my sense of how much that experience had contributed to my identity. I had been blind to this in the final leg of my undergraduate marathon, and even during graduation. It took some time and distance to focus on that reality and it was such an unanticipated pleasure when the penny dropped!

Those of you who are familiar with St. Mike’s, know that it boasts an incredibly engaged alumni body. At that first gathering that I attended, I connected not only with my own friends and classmates, but with alumni who had graduated decades before I was born. Suddenly, I realized that I was part of a huge network of proud, confident alumni of St. Michael’s College. That sense of belonging has never left me since that first Homecoming.

For our graduates, we recognize that at the moment, many of you just want to finish and get on with the next step. You may not see the impact that Brescia has had on you. We have certainly benefited from the impact that you have each had on Brescia as your handprints will remain behind, forever changing the people, programming, and collective accomplishments of Brescia. I look forward to hearing all about your journeys at Homecoming in a few short months when we will pay special recognition to the Class of 2010! Until then, study hard and enjoy your moment in the sun!

admin | graduation | 04 7th, 2010 | No Comments »

I’ve just finished reading a wonderful book by James Zull, The Art of Changing the Brain: Enriching the Practice of Teaching by Exploring the Biology of Learning. Before I get into this, let me take a step back. Over a year ago, it became clear that many Brescia faculty members were looking for a way to better understand the students in their classrooms. That led to a number of discussions that culminated in the launch of the Brescia Faculty Institute (“BFI”), a thrice-annual, full-day session that would be dedicated to optimizing learning in our classrooms.

The inaugural Brescia BFI was facilitated by Dr. Jo Ann Deak, an expert in the area of girls, women, and learning. Her presentation to faculty focused on emerging brain research that indicates, at the risk of oversimplifying, that the neurological differences between the brains of  young women and men can provide key lessons around maximizing the learning experiences of our students. By understanding what is going on, neurologically, for woman situated in what she called the “magic decade” between ages 12-22, we might aspire to teach to those specific needs and, in doing so, optimize learning.

I can tell you that Dr. Deak stirred up a great deal of interest, excitement, and even controversy among our faculty members and it has led to a renewed interest in brain research as it applies to learning strategies. James Zull’s book is in keeping with this growing field of research and scholarship.

Zull’s key premise, that I suspect Dr. Deak would love, is that “learning is change. It is change in ourselves because it is change in the brain. Thus, the art of teaching must be the art of changing the brain.” Zull, a Biology professor and the Director of the Centre for Innovation in Teaching and Education at Case Western Reserve University, argues that teaching must centre on creating conditions, presumably in the classroom, that lead to change in the learner’s brain. In order to optimize learning, Zull claims, we must build in strong experiences along with an opportunity to reflect on those experiences, utilizing David Kolb’s 1984 cyclical model of experiential learning whereby sensory experience leads to reflection which in turn leads to the generation of new ideas and finally the testing of those ideas known as learning. At all times, we must strive for balance among the different stages of this process, or otherwise risk not achieving the best outcomes.

While neuroscience has so much to tell us about optimizing learning for the entire community, it is even more instructive when we focus in on a slice of that community – women learners. It speaks to significant differences in the structure of the male and female brain, differences that are in many ways amplified when the brains in question are under 25 years old.

And so we continue trying to ‘change our own brains’ – to learn more about the art of learning – not just for the joy of that learning, but more importantly to serve our students as best we can. As the only women’s university in Canada, Brescia has the luxury of being able to target its efforts to female learners, a focus that surely leads to the best possible outcomes.

admin | the art of learning | 03 31st, 2010 | No Comments »

My attention has been drawn to Home Economics at Brescia twice over the past little while – two weeks ago, I had the pleasure of meeting with several women who are very involved with Home Economics associations and teaching in local high schools and who are interested in developing synergies between what high school students want to pursue and what we are offering in the way of courses and programs. I think that conversation was still percolating in my mind during a few days off over March Break, only to find myself facing the same discussion again on the cover of the Today section in yesterday’s London Free Press, “Smart money’s on home ec: The need to teach basic life skills is  back on the table.” Over my morning coffee,  I was pleased to see a picture of two lab-coated Brescia students working in our food lab, with a great article on the resurgent interest in this field of study.

I was never the “Becky Homecky” referred to in the LFP article; in fact, I’m a bit embarrassed to say that the blue poplin peasant skirt that was assigned as my Grade Nine Home Ec project in 1980 remains in a bag, totally unfinished, stored in our basement somewhere. Of course, rather than feeling deflated that I never finished the skirt, I wonder instead how it has managed to survive countless house moves since Grade Nine. Perhaps it’s time to clean out the basement properly!

In my meeting two weeks ago, one of the things mentioned by Diane O’Shea, the Head of Family Studies at Medway High School, is that students are anxious to study the lost art of home economics. While some of those students may feel a strong urge to become trained home economists, Diane explained, the majority of those high school students are more intent on seeking life skills. It used to be (read: “back in the day…”) that young people were taught many of the basics of independent living by their parents or grandparents. That included skills like safe and healthy food preparation, balancing a cheque book, creating a budget, and effective parenting skills. Now, our millennial generation seems to have missed out on those crucial life skills and students are recognizing it as they move through their teenage years in preparation for leaving the nest. It has fallen on our secondary schools to pick up the slack on this set of skills as the role of the family has shifted over the years with parents working and grandparents less likely to form part of the immediate family unit.

And when I turn my focus to the Brescia students I have met who are studying Family Studies or Food and Nutritional Sciences or some combination thereof, I am amazed by the degree to which the sciences have been integrated into these fields, leading to professionals who are ready to battle major issues such as childhood obesity, financial illiteracy, nutrition in the developing world, and diabetes. As much as it is falling on secondary schools and, to a growing degree, universities and colleges to ‘fill the gaps’ in community education, I remain impressed by the extent to which the current generation of students is well aware of what it is lacking and taking the necessary steps to remedy that.

When my lovely blue skirt got too difficult to finish, I neatly folded it, tried to avoid punctures from one of the million pins poking out of it, and never picked up a needle or thread again. It never occurred to me to take further steps to supplement my own lack of skills and knowledge in an area that felt overwhelming.  Much has been said about the current generation that is unflattering and, to a large degree, unfounded. They are the ‘trophy kids,’ not willing to work for what they want and expecting a gold star,  ‘just for showing up.’ Looking at the resurgence of Home Economics in our high schools and of its related fields of Family Studies and Food & Nutrition at Brescia, it occurs to me that this generation could teach us something about critical self-analysis and commitment. I look forward to future blogs about the millennial generation, but the more time I spend with members of this cohort, the more I am amazed by their collective fortitude and dogged determination to get to where they think they need to be.

admin | home economics | 03 23rd, 2010 | 2 Comments »

As Mother Nature continued to impress Londoners this week with her fiery blast of ‘early spring’, a crowd of people gathered in Brescia’s Auditorium last night to hear our International Women’s Day lecture given by Globe and Mail foreign correspondent Stephanie Nolen. Stephanie is perhaps best known for her award-winning collection of women’s stories in 28: Stories of AIDS in Africa, but she is even more compelling in person than she is in her writing.

Stephanie wove for us a tapestry of ordinary women living lives of poverty, oppression, disease and illiteracy, each one choosing, despite all of that, to improve the lives of those around them. These unintentional leaders have taken up the task of educating women, of nursing the sick, and caring for the orphaned. Stephanie’s stories were told casually, interspersed with humour and anecdotes. As I looked around the audience of primarily women, there were smiling faces. Everyone was obviously enjoying this balmy evening’s outing among friends and like-minded strangers.

But, when I lingered even a moment on some of the faces, I noticed something else…a sharpness  just below the surface. There was a definite discomfort;  a recognition of something more pointed in Stephanie’s message. The ‘feel good’ surface of these stories of strong women seemed to be wrapped around a more challenging core.

It has been a while since I found myself totally consumed by a righteous cause.  Clearly, life has ‘gotten in the way’ of the young activist that I was in my earliest days.  I was squirming in my seat last night, perhaps not alone in questioning how my life might have amounted to more positive change in the world.  For many, our contributions have been reduced to donating money to the loudest headlines or, if feeling particularly committed, boycotting manufacturers or nations with objectionable records. Is that the greatest contribution that I might hope to make in improving the world?

For me, International Women’s Day has been about the headlining women who became famous through their public struggles and prolific accomplishments. As a young law student, I could get very excited about the contributions of Nellie McClung or Clara Brett Martin or Agnes Macphail. But who is getting excited about the contribution of the unknown African woman living in some remote village, infected with HIV, quietly raising the orphaned children of other AIDS victims in that village? For this woman, it would seem that ‘choosing to lead’ is a decision that exacts a far greater cost with much less return.

I have a tendency to ‘measure’ leadership around me and a tendency to be more impressed by the large leadership gestures that I witness. What an important reminder that leadership that is quiet, and perhaps without followers, and not well-received, is often more likely to change the world. Choosing to lead is not always met with celebration or adulation or headlines.  In parts of the world, leadership for change can amount to a death wish. For that nameless woman in Africa, perhaps part of her leadership legacy is me thinking about her, half a globe away, uncomfortably wondering what more I should be doing.

admin | leadership | 03 12th, 2010 | 1 Comment »

On Saturday I had the great pleasure of hosting a group of local Catholic high school girls who asked if they could complete a community service project at Brescia. Together, we cleaned and polished the beautiful woodwork in the Brescia chapel and shared ideas about the whole notion of servant leadership and how it gives meaning to all of us in our daily lives. We used some elbow grease to clean the wood, while having some great conversation and a few laughs. I was inspired that these young women were happy to be sharing a quiet moment, working in the chapel with me on a warm and sunny Saturday, when they could so easily have been at the movies or with their friends.

I think it is appropriate to be looking at women in leadership as we celebrate International Women’s Day (IWD) at Brescia. I asked the girls to think about the women in their lives who have taught them by example, and we all pledged to take time to celebrate them, and with them where possible, this week.

As we worked, we had the opportunity to talk about the concept of servant leadership, something that has long been of interest to me. In 1970, Robert K. Greenleaf launched the servant leadership movement, coining the terms “servant leader” and “servant leadership” in his essay, “The Servant as Leader.” He claimed that to truly embody servant leadership, one must exhibit empathy, awareness, and foresight, must be a keen listener and be committed to building community: “The servant-leader is servant first… It begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead. That person is sharply different from one who is a leader first.” For me, servant leaders are among our most famous leaders in recent and distant history, ranging from Jesus Christ, Gandhi, and Mother Teresa of Calcutta to Martin Luther King Jr. and Terry Fox. There is no doubt that the Ursuline model is one of servant leadership – both at Brescia and in their other projects around the world.

Unlike other traditional models of leadership focusing on power and influence, servant leadership is about intentionally serving rather than intentionally leading. It is that service that attracts followers and results in positive change. I saw some wonderful servant leadership here in our little Brescia Chapel on Saturday. These young women were not focused on fame and glory in their rubber gloves (!), but they clearly wanted to beautify our place of worship. In that way, they chose leadership and I was grateful for the opportunity to work alongside them, following their lead.

admin | leadership | 03 8th, 2010 | No Comments »