Pathways course: invitation for input

Over the five or six days of the Summer Institute we have a glimpse of a way of being together that sustains a more subtle way of knowing and a more powerful kind of leadership. What if such a learning community extended over time, so that we were able to take this way of being and doing more fully into our personal and organizational systems?

I and others have been inspired by the potential for an ALIA "pathways" course for some time. ALIA board member Susan Skjei has been a thinking partner, based on her experience in developing the Authentic Leadership Certificate Program through Naropa University.

Over the years I have sometimes heard people speaking of the isolation and frustration they feel when going back to their home organization after the Summer Institute. Some people who come back year after year wonder about "the next phase" of their journey. And recently I have heard faculty expressing a longing for a "deeper integration" of their work.

I have thought it would be wonderful if teams could travel such a pathway together, and imagined how this would strengthen organizational, community, and regional networks of "authentic leaders in action" over time.

A"Pathways" course would recombine the elements and players from the Summer Institute. This foundational course could also be part of a learning ecosystem that included specialized modules, alllowing for a flexible, customized journey.

The program elements, the faculty relationships, and the infrastructure are already in place. Is it time to do this? What would it take to begin? Would we pilot it within an organization, as an open enrolment program, through affiliation with a university? What is the economic model?

I welcome your comments and suggestions.