Leadership Course Objectives & Competencies
ORGL 600 - Foundations of Leadership
In this course, we examined four questions:
What don’t I want as a leader?
What do I want as a leader?
What does this require of me as a leader?
How does this shape who I am becoming?
We read texts that looked at the five frames of leadership, or five different ways of viewing problems within an organization. We also looked empirical-based research from Kouzes and Posner that laid out the five principles of leadership. Based on these principles, we had several people complete a 360-degree review on us, which revealed some interesting results. At the end of the course, we wrote a paper that examined a problem in our own organization through each of the five frames.
ORGL 504 - Organizational Communication
This class focused on learning organizational communication theory, identifying and discussing major issues regarding communication in organizations, and enhancing my own competency as a communicator and a leader within an organization. The focus of the class was on performing a communication audit of our own with an organization, which put into practice the theories we were learning. Although I enjoyed parts of the class, it solidified for me that being an organizational development (OD) consultant was not the direction I wanted to go. Having this insight in the first semester was invaluable, for it completely changed the electives I took later in the program.
ORGL 524 – Leadership & Human Resources
In this course, I was given an introduction to human resources and the important role it plays in organizational settings. Specifically, we looked at how human resources is really becoming a key agent for change and development in organizations, and the skills necessary to be such a leader. We looked at all aspects of human resources, including policy and practice, training, motivation, evaluation, and legislation. I applied these competencies to volunteer management in my final project, which is the aspect of human resources that most closely aligns with my career goals.
ORGL 605 - Imagine, Create, Lead
This required course also had a required 3-day residency on campus, which was the highlight of my time in the program. The focus on this class was to apply and expand our creative and imaginative capacity, and we were exposed to different techniques for developing and enhancing our own creativity and imagination in a personal and leadership context. For this iteration of the course, the creative aspects examined were mindfulness, improvisation, movement, transcendentalism, and metanoia. The theme of the class was “seeing, and seeing again”, a theme that was carried over into my final project. The final project can be found by clicking on the button below, and the summary is located here.
ORGL 690 - The Art & Practice of Servant Leadership
This course provided me with a profound awareness of servant-leadership through an examination of the life of Robert K. Greenleaf and the servant-leadership writings of contemporary practitioners and thought leaders. Although only a one-credit campus, it had a one-day, on-campus class that was particularly enlightening. The paper requirements after the class was broad, and I ended up examining the relationship between spirituality and servant-leadership. I walked away with a deeper understanding of servant-leadership in an organizational context from my classmates and my own spiritual beliefs through my outside research.
ORGL 610 - Communication & Leadership Ethics
This course was an inquiry into the personal, organizational, and social values present in ethical dilemmas. Through it, I was able to articulate my own ethical framework, identify ethical values in my own organization, and explore the idea of ethical pluralism. The importance of dialogue was analyzed, and several case studies provided additional food for thought. I have two artifacts, as there were internal and external components to this class. The first (accessed by clicking the button below) is my introduction video, where I first defined my ethical framework; the second artifact was the second paper we had to submit, which analyzed if dialogue was happening around a current event.
ORGL 615 - Organizational Theory & Behavior
This class was unlike any other, and it really challenged me. In this course, we read about how to build a “learning organization” and the benefits of doing so. We also dove into systems thinking, and examined how many issues in an organization are systematic, and can therefore be avoided or pre-empted. Teams within organizations was also a focus, and we looked at where “great teams” come from and how to help design teams like that as a leader. As I wrote in my final discussion board post: “In order to see the big picture, we must look at how the details all connect to each other.” The artifact for this class is a group project that I was a part of, where we looked at organizational behavior while being a part of our own team. The case study can be found by clicking the button below, and the accompanying action plan is here.
ORGL 689 - Leadership & Mindfulness
Through this course and its on-campus residency, I was introduced to mindfulness that was rooted in empirical research. Additionally, we looked at mindfulness’ connection to Jesuit principles, such as experience, reflection, and action. Daily mediation was a requirement for this course and I was exposed to several different styles of meditation, as well as scholarly articles that analyzed the empirical and scientific evidence on the benefits of meditation. This class was my favorite elective and it came at a pivotal time in my life.
ORGL 518 - Transforming Leadership
In the very first discussion board post of this class, we were asked to give our own personal definition of transformation. I defined transformation as “growing into the next best version of yourself through experience, reflection, and action”. We considered what it means to stop living the divided life, and the transformational process of becoming whole. The transformational process was applied to our interior lives, as well as that of an organization, so we could see transforming leadership in both contexts of leadership. It was in this class that I identified the quote by Martin Luther King Jr. that best sums up my leadership philosophy.
ORGL 532 - Leadership, Justice & Forgiveness
In my final elective, I was asked to challenge myself and my assumptions about leadership, justice, and the important role forgiveness plays in our lives. This class looked at servant-leadership as an antidote to the world’s atrocities, and examined how forgiveness – specifically, asking for forgiveness rather than forgiving others – can enrich our lives and the lives of others. I had never thought of forgiving someone else as something you do for yourself, not for the other person. I was forced to look inward at my own life to see where I can do my own healing, to help others heal as a leader. The artifact demonstrates learning I acquired regarding the place of forgiveness in an organizational setting.
ORGL 620 - Leadership Seminar
For this final course, I wrote a succinct and reflective leadership philosophy, which enabled me to review where I started and synthesize all I've learned. Additionally, I completed a project that demonstrated my learning in action. The portfolio is my artifact for this class and a wonderful artifact of the entire experience.