In an effort to cultivate leadership and inspire hope for the future among Kansans of color, the Kansas Leadership Center (KLC) launched a new initiative, Creating Leadership Together, and selected nine Kansas organizations to serve as partners.
“We’re excited to launch Creating Leadership Together and create a community development partnership with nine organizations that work with Kansans of color who are typically under-represented in leadership programs. Each partner has committed to sustainable, ongoing training sufficient to make a difference while working toward the common good of their community. In return, KLC is providing an all-encompassing package of support that will position these community-based organizations to offer a sustainable leadership program under their own direction.”
Congratulations to the first cohort of Creating Leadership Together partners!
Urban League of Kansas (Wichita)
Kansas State Conference of NAACP (Wichita)
Salud + Bienestar (Wichita)
Topeka Latino Professionals (Topeka)
Wichita Urban Professionals (Wichita)
WSU Office of Diversity and Inclusion (Wichita)
Start at Zero (Kansas City)
Made Men (Kansas City)
Opus Media (Overland Park)
Through Creating Leadership Together, KLC offered in-kind leadership development training and program design consulting for each of the Kansas-based organizations selected as partners in the initiative. Additionally, each partner was eligible to receive up to $10,000 in seed money for their first two years of programs.
With all the issues and challenges that compete for our attention in our professional and personal lives, organizations and communities, why is leadership development an important focus? Why is it so relevant and how can it prove to be a wise investment?
Third Floor Research, our research partnership with Kansas State University, studied the impact of community leadership programs in Kansas, particularly those that adopt Kansas Leadership Center’s approach to leadership as an activity, not a position. The results revealed a link between these programs and increased workforce and community engagement. Participants who graduate from these programs:
- Feel more confidence in their leadership efficacy (ability to self-regulate stress and improve team performance).
- Develop significant new leadership skills for the workplace, such as empowering others, addressing problems in new ways, and enhancing self-awareness.
- Are three times more likely to want to serve their communities in a civic role (board member, elected official, advisory group, committee member, etc.).
Finally, participation in these programs significantly increases community engagement outcomes (political involvement, volunteering, civic participation, donations, etc.). In short, community leadership programs develop the capacity of both individuals and the communities where they have influence and impact.
