Leadership Development and Coaching For MCH Professionals
A Program for Interdisciplinary, Intergenerational MCH Professionals
DETAILED PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
The UIC Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Program in the School of Public Health is committed to providing professional leadership development for individuals who devote their careers to ensuring the health and well-being of women, children, and families. A key component of our programs is the ongoing personal leadership development of the individual (MCH Leadership Competencies 3.0). This type of programming enhancesthe many and varied opportunities that exist to develop leadership capacity related to a specific skill-set and/or knowledge base in the broad field of MCH. Personal leadership development includes professional coaching and other tools to tap into a deep understanding/knowing/experience of one’s unique leadership style, leadership strengths, passion for MCH, motivation to make a difference, and desire for work/life balance. This program is a six-month leadership/coaching program that includes group leadership development calls and individual coaching sessions with a professional leadership coach.
The target audience includes intergenerational, interdisciplinary MCH professionals from across the country. Participants may include individuals working in Title V-funded programs or an MCHB-funded training program (LEND, LEAH, PPC, SPH, Nutrition, etc.), or senior level leaders, mid-level managers, emerging leaders, new professionals, and family members who work in some capacity to improve the health and well-being of women, children, and families. Participants will be selected for inclusion in this program based on a short application and a 1-2 page Letter of Interest.
At the conclusion of this program, participants will be able to:
Identify their personal leadership strengths and action steps to support the enhancement of these strengths. [Strengths Based Leadership]
Identify their personal leadership gaps and steps to address noted gaps.
Align their decision-making process with personal/professional values.
Engage in self-reflection exercises to enhance personal leadership and explore opportunities to improve their skill set, work satisfaction, and level of work engagement.
Identify sources of personal reward and rejuvenation to sustain productivity and MCH commitment.
Clearly define their passion for MCH and engage in work that makes a difference in their communities.
Create a leadership development action plan to support their ongoing leadership development and commitment to the field of MCH.
The program and professional coaching will be delivered by Kris Risley, DrPH, CPCC. Dr. Risley is the Continuing Education Director for the UIC MCHP. She is also a Certified Professional Co-active Coach trained through the Coaches Training Institute. Additional coaches will work with Dr. Risley to deliver professional coaching.
Key Success Criteria
Based on experience, several important factors influence the success of this type of coaching/leadership program:
The participant is a willing participant. S/he is willing to take responsibility for his/her results, is ready for change, is “coachable” (i.e. not resistant), and is willing to practice self-awareness in order to create significant and sustainable progress toward change. It is best if the participant is ready and ‘hungry’ for coaching and is fully engaged in the process.
Participant and coach empower the coaching relationship and the program. Both individuals agree to treat the coaching relationship and leadership sessions asmeaningful tools for growth. If the program is not supporting the participant’s progress, the participant agrees to communicate and take action to return the power to the coaching relationship. If any issues or disagreements arise, they will be discussed and resolved promptly and openly. The coach’s intention is for the relationship to be highly professional, as well as completely open and safe.
There is ample time for the results to unfold. Generally, a 6 month commitment is the norm used in most organizations who work with coaches. Six months is a reasonable amount of time for new skills to be learned and integrated. This program is designed as a 6-month program.
The agency/organization/university/program in which the participant works is supportive of the leadership/coaching program. Although place of employment does not need to be aware of program participation, it is helpful if an agency/organization is supportive ofthe leadership/coaching program.
The Process
The proposed coaching/leadership program will be implemented as follows:
Tele-Conference Calls. This program includes 6 monthly tele-conference calls (1-hour each) with all program participants. In the initial call, the coach will introduce the leadership/coaching program to participants and discuss the coaching process. Additional calls will focus on a number of topics: StrengthsFinder 2.0, Future Visioning, Values Clarification, Clarifying Perspectives. A final call will take place to allow individuals an opportunity to share future plans and action steps.
Individual Coaching Calls. This program includes 6-months of individual coaching sessions (1 1/2 hours/month). All coaching takes place over the phone. Sessions are outlined below.
- Initial Discovery Session. During the first month of coaching, the coach conducts an in-depth, telephone meeting with the participant to discuss his/her professional and personal coaching goals and his/her assessment of work as it relates to the other facets of his/her life. Coach and participant discuss results of the pre-coaching assessments (personal/professional life/work satisfaction wheels, StrengthsFinder 2.0 assessment). Coach and participant design their coaching relationship [alliance].
- Coaching: After the initial Discovery Session, the coach and participant will coach over the phonefor an additional five months [2-3 times/month; 1 1/2 hours/month; 2, 45-minute sessions or 3, 30-minute sessions]. In each of the individual sessions, the coaching will focus on the outlined goals, while also integrating real-time issues that support the coaching process. In the final session, the coach and participant will review progress toward program goals and discuss future action steps.
Post-Coaching Action Plan: Participant prepares a written action plan to use as a guide for progress after coaching is completed. This action plan will include a clear focus for the next 6-12 months with intended outcomes and specific steps for achieving goals that might be yet unmet. The participant is free to engage the coach in the development of this document. This plan should include information about how the participant plans to take the learning from this program to enhance their MCH work.
Terms and Agreements
Nature of Coaching Relationship
Coaching is a professional partnership designed to produce change and growth in a participant’s professional and personal life. A participant enters into coaching with the understanding that he or she is responsible for creating his/her own decisions and results. The participant also agrees not to hold the Coach liable for any actions or results for adverse situations created as a direct result of the coaching. The coaching relationship is in no way to be construed as psychological counseling or psychotherapy.
Roles and Responsibilities
Coach: To work with the participant in becoming aware of his/her growth opportunity areas, to focus coaching on achieving results against the goals established in those areas, and to be a responsible ally and confidante in the journey of self development.
Participant: To work in earnest with his/her coach on areas of opportunity, to create goals for development, to show up for coaching on time and ready to work, to complete any homework or exercises assigned by the coach to support the learning, to keep his/her supervisor informed regarding progress and to develop an action plan for the future after coaching is complete.
Agency/Organization: Although place of employment does not need to be aware of program participation, it is helpful if an agency/organization is supportive ofthe leadership/coaching program.
Confidentiality
A key cornerstone of coaching is confidentiality; as the quality of the coaching is completely dependent on the participant’s absolute trust in his/her coach. This means that everything the participant says to the coach is completely confidential and not shared with anyone. Should the participant wish to share information from the meetings, he/she is at liberty to do so. The coach will not disclose the name of the participant without his/her consent (for example, as a reference) and will keep the coaching relationship confidential unless the participant chooses to disclose it.This confidentiality statement shall be as confidential as the applicable state or federal laws allows. In the eyes of the law, the coaching relationship is not privileged and, as such, a coach’s records on a participant can be subpoenaed.
Progress Reports
The participant is encouraged to communicate with his/her agency/organization regarding the progress of the coaching/leadership program. However, this is not a requirement of the program.
Assessments
Participants will complete pre- and post-program assessments. The MCHP will explore summary findings in aggregate to assess the extent to which the program is having the desired impact and helping participants to achieve program objectives. Individual results will not be shared with the participant’s agency/organization or with the UIC MCHP.
Logistics
Application Deadline. Monday,November 14, 2011. All materials including the interest form, answers to application questions, and Letter of Interest should be mailed to the attention of Jaime Klaus, Maternal and Child Health Program, School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1603 W. Taylor Street (MC 923), Chicago, IL 60612 or faxed to 312.996.3551 or emailed to Jaime at .
Notification of Program Acceptance. You will be notified of program acceptance via email by Wednesday, November 30, 2011.
Program Start Date: January 6, 2012
Program End Date: June 2012
Monthly Tele-Classes. Group calls will take place the first Friday of Every month (12pm-1pm cst) and will be recorded if you are unable to attend at the scheduled time.
Friday, January 6, 2012
Friday, February3, 2012
Friday, March 2, 2012
Friday, April6, 2012
Friday, May 4, 2012
Friday, June1, 2012
Coaching Calls. Monthly coaching calls will be determined by the coach and participant. There will be 1 ½ hours of coaching each month [2, 45-minute sessions]. Coaching sessions begin in January and end in June.
Fees: The program fee is $1800/person and is due to the MCH Program by Friday, December 30, 2011. Checks can be made payable to the University of Illinois and mailed to Kris Risley, DrPH, Maternal and Child Health Program, School of Public Health, 1603 W. Taylor Street, Chicago, IL 60605
Materials: Prior to the start of the program, participants are required to purchase the book Strengths Based Leadership by Tom Rath and Barry Conchie, complete the online StrengthsFinder 2.0 Assessment, and return findings to UIC and to his/her coach.
Time Commitment: Participants can expect to spend 2 ½ hours/month on coaching calls and group leadership sessions and as much time as desired/needed on homework generated through coaching calls(usually no more than 1 hour/month). NOTE: This program is not designed to add to the participant’s workload. Rather, this program is designed to support the workload of the individuals so that it feels less overwhelming and more alive!
Questions: Kris Risley, DrPH, or 312.996.2875 or Jaime Klaus, MA, , 312.996.0724.