|
Vol. 38, No. 18
|
 |
3-4-2008
By: Jeff McCallister Academy inspires, develops leadership potential Robert “Bo” Chilton has always been a very busy man.
A former high and middle school teacher, he’s also held administrative positions at both Otterbein College and Ohio State, served as a legislative aide for a Columbus City Council member and been director of African-American Male Initiatives for the Columbus Urban League.
That steadily rising leadership profile earned him a nomination and eventual fellowship into the African-American Leadership Academy, a program developed to groom the next generation of black leaders in Columbus.
“The academy gives me a chance to talk about leadership and to develop my own personal style of leadership in a way that doesn’t exist anywhere else,” Chilton said.
The AALA, which hosts its fourth class of fellows this year, was the brainchild of Columbus lawyer Larry James and is a partnership with the United Way and the Jefferson Center for Learning and the Arts.
It offers training and development to young professionals in nonprofit, government and the private sector who show potential for top leadership in their business and civic life.
Formal partnership
Dawn Tyler Lee was a member of the first class of fellows at the African American Leadership Academy, which has just signed a partnership agreement with Ohio State’s Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity.
The partnership simply recognizes that the two institutions share similar missions and goals. It gives the academy access to classroom and meeting space at the Kirwan Institute and permission to use the university logo to advertise the affiliation. There is no monetary gain either way, and the academy remains an independent entity.
“It ought to be good for both groups,” said Tyler Lee, assistant vice president for government relations at Ohio State. “It presents an opportunity for the university to connect with the African American community in meaningful ways, and it shows the university’s commitment to connecting with the larger community.”
john a. powell, director of the Kirwan Institute, said that was part of the idea. “The university and the academy are both out for the same thing, and that’s to identify talent and develop it,” he said. “There are always efforts to be more engaged with the community. This is a wonderful opportunity to do that with no downside.”
“It may seem like a simple thing, but there are a lot of people who won’t even come onto the campus because they think it’s overwhelming. They’re intimidated by the very act of coming here,” Tyler Lee said. “This helps introduce the campus to a group of people who can then access more of the programming that goes on here.” |
“The academy reaches out to African American professionals in mid-career who have already demonstrated some degree of accomplishment and seem to be on a trajectory to do even more important things, and it connects them with others who are a little farther along,” said john a. powell, director of Ohio State’s Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity.
The Kirwan Institute and the AALA signed a Memo of Understanding in mid-February that formalizes the relationship between the two groups.
“We always focus on the people who are struggling more than people who are doing well. But we all need help, and this is an opportunity to enrich our entire community,” powell said.
“Through past dealings with john powell and his expertise regarding race, opportunity and ethnicity, we knew the Kirwan Institute was the perfect place to house the work of the academy and to pursue some of our common goals,” said Yvette McGee Brown, chairman of the AALA’s advisory board.
Each academy class comprises 12 or 13 fellows, who meet for four hours once a month during the school year with faculty that include State Rep. Joyce Beaty and State Sen. Ray Miller, among other influential black leaders. The members discuss leadership issues and share experiences among themselves and the faculty or guest speakers and work with a career coach.
“It is critically important to develop young professionals who are committed to their community and to its success,” McGee Brown said. “We try to assist in ways that enable them to identify a true connection to their community so when they have the opportunity to make a difference, they can seize the moment in a meaningful way.
“Leadership is a way of life that must be very intentional,” she said. “Our fellows must know who they are, what it means to be a leader and why it is important to own the responsibility.”
Chilton has gotten even busier since his entry into the program; he and his wife have had their second child, and he’s taken on a new job as executive director of the Columbus Franklin County Community Action Agency.
Fifty-hour workweeks aren’t uncommon and 60-hour weeks aren’t unheard of as he puts together the anti-poverty agency almost from scratch.
“The real value of this program is the network it creates for you, the opportunity to gain insight from people who have gone before you,” Chilton said.
“One of the best nuggets I’ve gotten came from Yvette McGee Brown. I was asking her about striking a balance between climbing the ladder and taking care of your family. She just said, ‘Wherever you are, be there. If you’re at work, give work your all; if you’re at home, give them your quality time,’” he said. “When you get advice like that from someone who’s been through what you’re going through, it gives it a little more meaning, and that’s what the academy is all about.”
onCampus Home
|
