A Program for Today’s Changemakers
The WKKF Community Leadership Network prepares leaders to rise to the challenges of our time.
The 18-month program offers hands-on training, personalized coaching, community-based support and practical experience.
Connect
- Unite with a diverse group of leaders from across the U.S. and learn from each other.
- Gain skills to engage varied voices and bring people together around solutions.
- Join a global alumni network of fellows with resources and support to effect real change.
Grow
- Expand leadership skills for navigating differences and strengthening communities.
- Learn powerful ways to advance racial equity and racial healing.
- Emerge with a stronger self-awareness and emotional intelligence.
Lead
- Put new knowledge and skills into action through a three-month, place-based culminating project.
- Become a champion for children and families to advance equitable policies and practices.
- Get fully equipped to lead transformational change in communities.
“This fellowship really opened me up to understanding that it’s not just about serving our local population but about championing racial equity and changing systems in place.”
— Class One Fellow
5 All-Class Sessions
In these core sessions, fellows build self-mastery, deepen understanding of racism and equity, and gain knowledge and skills relevant to community engagement and leading in place.
5 Community Cohort Convenings
Between All-Class Sessions, fellows participate in a smaller community cohort, where they go deeper on issues specific to their communities and begin to develop a collaborative, place-based Community Leadership Project.
8 Professional Coaching Sessions
Each fellow is paired with one of the Center for Creative Leadership’s global cadre of executive coaches. One-on-one coaching sessions guide fellows in bringing class material to life on their leadership journey.
Community Leadership Project
Community cohorts collaboratively develop a place-based, culminating project drawing on what they’ve learned. The last three months of the program focus on its implementation and working collectively to create transformational change in local communities.
All-Class Closing Ceremony
In August 2020, fellows reconvene to celebrate the successes of their Community Leadership Projects and their transformational journey throughout the fellowship and beyond.
Class Two fellows will be joining a powerful network of peers leading transformative change in their communities.
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The WKKF Community Leadership Network is an 18-month fellowship program for local leaders to connect, grow and lead transformational change on behalf of children, families and communities. Programming and benefits include:
- Knowledge- and skill-building trainings focused on leadership, racial equity and racial healing, community engagement and networking, and leading in place.
- Five, multi-day gatherings, and a series of other engaged learning opportunities facilitated by the Center for Creative Leadership, WKKF and other partners. Travel expenses, lodging, and meals connected to these events and other meetings are paid by the program.
- Individualized coaching to guide personal and professional development and help fellows get the most out of the program.
- A three-month, place-based culminating project experience to apply new knowledge and skills in developing a strategic plan and leading collaborative action in communities.
- Connection with a community of leaders – both within the fellowship class of 60 and with an extensive network of 1,700+ alumni – all working to advance equity.
- A stipend of $25,000 (taxable) and an opportunity to participate in an international summit with the Kellogg Fellows Leadership Alliance (KFLA) network.
The WKKF Community Leadership Network Class Two will run from March 2019 through August 2020. Specific time commitments include:
- Participating in five, multi-day gatherings, plus a two-day closing. (Meetings will rotate to different locations around the U.S.)
- Devoting four to 12 hours each month to additional training, cohort meetings and/or individual work with a coach.
- Collaboratively leading a place-based culminating project that builds throughout the program and is fully executed in the last three months, putting new knowledge and skills into action.
- Being part of and contributing to fostering a supportive, collaborative fellowship community throughout the program.
- Documenting and communicating about your fellowship experience quarterly to extend the learning and impact with broader audiences.
- Collaborating with CCL and WKKF to help shape current class programming, as well as evaluating and providing input for future classes.
We’re looking to recruit a diverse class of fellows who are:
- Passionate about improving opportunities for children, families and communities.
- At a pivotal moment in their careers to benefit from this type of leadership development and network program.
- Intentional about deepening their understanding of racial equity and racial healing to create transformational change in communities.
- Representative of a broad range of disciplines, such as academia, business, faith, government, nonprofit or philanthropy.
- Experienced or interested in early childhood education, health, food systems, workforce development, family economic security, racial equity or other fields that advance children’s well-being.
- Residing in the U.S. We are assembling five cohorts of fellows – four from WKKF’s priority places of Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico and New Orleans, and one national U.S. cohort.
- Have basic knowledge of and access to a computer with Office systems, email and Internet.
The application period for Class Two of the WKKF Community Leadership Network fellowship, which will run from March 2019 through August 2020, is closed. Please check back for updates.
Since the 1930s, the Kellogg Foundation has supported many leadership programs across the globe. This support created a network of thousands of individuals from at least 53 countries associated with current and former WKKF leadership programs. The alumni network’s purpose is to create opportunities for connection, reflection and collective action through collaboration among fellows – either within their cohort or among cohorts – so they can share their expertise, leverage their influence and create greater impact in communities. WKKF Community Leadership Network fellows will have the opportunity to connect to this network and resources upon completion of their fellowship.
At the Kellogg Foundation, we believe people have the inherent capacity to solve their own problems and, for more than 90 years, we have invested in nurturing local leaders to engage communities in improving opportunity for children and families. The WKKF Community Leadership Network is a continuation of the Kellogg Foundation’s commitment to support local leaders and foster collaborative action toward a more equitable society.
As a world-class leadership development program, the WKKF Community Leadership Network will equip the next generation of leaders to bridge the divides in our society and build a more equitable future for all.