They will be playing in games for which the rules haven't yet been established. It is based on the realization that we all need to develop our own working philosophy of leadership and determine how to implement it within our organizational and societal constraints. It is also important to realize that our personal style of leadership needs to be flexible enough to change with and react to these constraints and changes. It is a program sponsored by Cooperative Extension in the 12 north central states as part of the National Extension Leadership Development Program. Nationally, the NELD program is supported by the USDA Cooperative Extension System and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
Participants come together for four seminars.
The first seminar, in Minneapolis May 12 to 15, focused on building a personal leadership philosophy and credo. In September, participants will meet in Chicago to work on increasing their ability to work effectively with and through others. Specific emphasis will be placed on valuing and enhancing diversity. Seminar III focuses on building bridges for organizational action and will be held in Washington, D.C., in January. The tentative location for that session is Fort Berthod, North Dakota.