LeadingAge New York Adviser Adviser LeadingAge NewYork Spring 2019 final | Page 19

IGNITE Leadership Academy: FELLOWship and Celebration Old friends happily greeted each other, and new connections were made at a special pre-conference designed specifically for graduates of IGNITE and the national LeadingAge Larry Minnix Leadership Academy. Wendy Green, managing vice president of leadership development, LeadingAge, Washington, DC, and Kelly Papa, vice president, strategy and community life, Duncaster, Bloomfield, CT, facilitated the session. Wendy oversees the national LeadingAge Larry Minnix Leadership Academy, and Kelly is a graduate of the Larry Minnix Leadership Academy as well as a facilitator for LeadingAge Connecticut’s Leadership Academy program. The diverse group of participants included alumni from each year of the IGNITE program as well as alumni from various classes of the national program. LeadingAge NY is appreciative of the support of Aging in America, which enabled us to offer the program free of charge to the participants. The session, entitled Transitions in Leadership, reconnected alumni with the tenets of their Leadership Academy experience while focusing on the challenges in transitions that are inherent in leadership. It was clear that the participants enjoyed the presenters and the content, but equally as valuable was the opportunity for alumni to reconnect with their former classmates and network with other alumni. One participant remarked, “It was wonderful to connect and reconnect with everyone and to be reminded of the concepts that bind us together.” The networking continued that evening at the Leadership Academy mixer at the Parting Glass in Saratoga. This annual event provides the opportunity for former classmates to catch up and meet other alumni from other state and national class years in a relaxed, fun atmosphere. Later that week, the 2018-19 IGNITE Leadership Academy graduation ceremony highlighted the accomplishments of this year’s class, comprised of 21 smart, talented leaders from member organizations across the state who are deeply committed to the field. During the graduation ceremony, Michael N. Rosenblut, president and CEO of Parker Jewish Institute for Health Care and Rehabilitation and chairman of the LeadingAge NY Board of Directors, congratulated them on all their accomplishments and wished them much success in the future. Each of the 21 fellows in this year’s class took on an “action learning project,” putting the learning from the program into action to address a need within their organization. This is a great way for fellows to give back to the organizations that invested in them by sending them to the program. A summary of their projects can be found here. The projects offer great ideas that will be beneficial to the field and can be replicated in other member organizations. The IGNITE program began when some dedicated LeadingAge NY members who had participated in the national LeadingAge Leadership Academy recognized that this valuable program was needed on the state level to inspire, nurture and empower leaders from New York’s non-profit provider community. Their hard work helped us to develop the IGNITE Leadership Academy, and the program has graduated approximately 120 people since it was established in 2013. IGNITE is a yearlong professional development program designed to facilitate the development and growth of senior living leaders in the state. The experience provides participants with the tools they will need to be outstanding leaders in their organizations. It differs from an MBA-type program in that its focus is on teaching participants how their own thinking and values are key components to developing their own qualities of leadership. In addition, participants acquire the tools to help them work with teams, build successful teams and collaborate. Only members of LeadingAge NY provider member organizations may apply for the program. The application for the 2020-21 class will be available in the spring of 2020. For more information about the program, click here. Anyone with questions about IGNITE Leadership Academy can contact Diane Darbyshire at [email protected] or 518-867-8828. leadingageny.org 18