Leadership Month 2023
Overview
What?
Online leadership sessions to help you get new ideas and be more effective as a VMN chapter leader and board.
Who?
All VMN chapter advisors and chapter board members are invited. Prospective or upcoming board members are welcome too, but an existing board member will need to invite them, as the announcements are just sent to our current chapter board email list.
When and Where?
There are three evenings of online sessions, all with different content. Leaders from all VMN chapters are welcome at any and all of them. There is also a meeting just for chapter advisors. Leaders from all VMN chapters are welcome to attend as many or as few as they like, but we do hope to see at least one leader from every chapter in most sessions. All sessions are via Zoom.
Registrations
Please look at the schedule below to find the registration links for each session. Note that each separate session has its own Zoom registration, even sessions that are on the same day.
Registrations are open until the start of the session. If possible, please register at least 3 days before the session as we may be sorting you into breakout rooms for discussions, sending out pre-session materials, etc.
Recordings
While we encourage you to participate live if you can, most sessions will be recorded so that you can watch them later. It may be a few weeks after the events that the videos become available to you, because we will need to have the captions edited. Sessions or parts of sessions that are primarily conversations amongst chapter leaders may not be recorded, because we want participants to feel they can speak freely.
If you are a person with a disability and desire any assistive devices, services or other accommodations to participate in this activity, please contact Michelle Prysby, VMN Program Director at 434-872-4571/TDD* during business hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. to discuss accommodations 5 days prior to the event.
*TDD number is (800) 828-1120.
Schedule of Events and Registration Links
Session 1 – Monday, November 6, 6:30-7:25 pm: VMN Program Updates
Description: Please join to hear the latest and greatest about program policies and procedures. It will be things you need to know as a chapter leader, and we promise to make it fun!
Presenters: Michelle Prysby, VMN Program Director and Tiffany Brown, VMN Program Assistant
Watch the recording from Session 1: VMN Program Updates
Session 2 – Monday, November 6, 7:30-8:30 pm: Engaging with Our Sponsoring Agencies Part II – Virginia Cooperative Extension
Description: Last year, we held a session on how VMN chapters can best engage with two of our sponsoring agencies (Virginia State Parks and DOF.) This year, we continue with a focus on Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE). VCE is the lead sponsor of our program, has a presence all over Virginia, and advances the wellbeing of all Virginians by putting research-based knowledge into action. Agency representatives will join us to talk about the breadth of Extension’s work, Extension programming related to natural resources, the roles for volunteers in the organizations, and suggestions for developing relationships between VMN chapters and local Extension offices.
Presenters: Dave Close is the Specialist for Volunteer Engagement for Virginia Cooperative Extension. Previously, he served as the State Extension Specialist for Consumer Horticulture and the State Program Director for the Extension Master Gardener Program. Before moving to Virginia Tech, Dave was the Community Forestry Coordinator for the southern 36 counties in Illinois working jointly with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and Southern Illinois University assisting small municipalities to manage their community forest resources. He received an M.S. degree in Forest Ecology from Southern Illinois University and has post-masters course work in Botany, Environmental Resources and Policy, and Leadership.
Dan Goerlich is Virginia Cooperative Extension’s Associate Director for Economy, Community, and Food. Prior to that role, he was the District Program Leader and the Forestry and Natural Resources agent for VCE’s Central District. He has a doctoral degree in Forestry from Virginia Tech.
Session 3 – Tuesday, November 14, 6:30-7:25 pm
Engaging Your Members Through Chapter Meetings
Description: Across the program, our chapters vary from holding monthly chapter meetings for their whole membership to only getting together once or twice a year. We will discuss the benefits of meeting regularly, possible ways to structure chapter meetings, and ideas to get members to keep showing up. A panel of chapter leaders will be there to share their techniques and experiences.
Presenters: This session will be moderated by Tiffany Brown, VMN Program Assistant. She will be joined by representatives from several chapters who will talk about their approaches to chapter meetings.
Watch the recording from Session 3: Engaging Your Members Through Chapter Meetings
Session 4 – Tuesday, November 14, 7:30-8:30 pm: Taking a New Project from Idea to Reality
Description: Have you had a VMN chapter member contact you with an idea for a new volunteer service activity they want to do? Or been contacted by a local organization looking for VMN volunteers for a project that is new to the chapter? In this session, we will talk about how to take a project from an idea to a reality. We will discuss everything from the processes for approvals to the technical aspects of project documentation in Better Impact and more. We’ll also debut an updated version of the project proposal form that can help you gather the information you need about each of your chapter’s service activities.
Presenter: Michelle Prysby, VMN Program Director
Watch the recording from Session 4: Taking a New Project from Idea to Reality
Session 5 – Wednesday, November 29, 6:30-8:30 pm: Moving from Conflict to Collaboration
Description: This highly interactive, thought-provoking, and practical workshop will introduce the participants to key principles of conflict transformation and of effective communication. The participants will learn how to utilize mindfulness, observation without evaluation, active listening, and curiosity to transform even the most difficult interactions into opportunities for growth, connection, and dialogue.
Presenter: Henry Yampolsky, J.D. is a best-selling author of Dis-Solving Conflict from Within: an Inner Path for Conflict Transformation. Henry is a mediator, educator, lawyer and a multi-time TEDx speaker. Henry serves as the Assistant Director for Education, Outreach, and Conflict Resolution at Virginia Tech’s Office for Equity and Accessibility. He also teaches conflict resolution, mediation, and peacebuilding as a part of Virginia Tech’s Center for Peace Studies and Violence Prevention. Henry has worked with hundreds of complex conflicts and has taught and lectured around the world including at: Columbia University School of Law, the New York Peace Institute, the International Gandhi Center in New Delhi, Bellevue Mediation in Zurich, Switzerland, Bharathiar University in Coimbatore, India and at the Sattva Summit in Rishikesh, India. Prior to embarking on a career in conflict resolution and peacebuilding, Henry was an award winning trial lawyer in Philadelphia. He holds a Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from Temple University and has a Bachelor of Science in International Relations from the University of Scranton. A native of Kyiv, Ukraine, Henry resides in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.
Watch the recording from Session 5: Moving from Conflict to Collaboration
Wednesday, November 15, 12:00-1:30 pm: Chapter Advisors Meeting
Description: We ask chapter advisors to join us to get up to speed on what’s happening in the VMN program, to share their perspectives, and to network with each other. We will have a Q&A time to answer your burning questions about VMN procedures and the advisor role and responsibilities.
Expected Outcomes
Do you need further convincing to participate in our Leadership Month sessions?
- Each year, more than 90% of VMN Leadership Day evaluation respondents rate the workshops as “Excellent” or “Very Good”.
- 97% say that participating made them feel more supported in their chapter leadership role.
- More than 95% report they got new ideas they planned to implement in their chapters.