Coro E-Connections

Note from the CEO:
The Powerful Impact of Coro Training

Coro Leadership Center – St. Louis has a 36-year history of preparing individuals to be engaged, responsible citizens and effective civic leaders. In the midst of the training, our participants provide feedback about seminars, interviews, and sector/project experiences. At the end of the training, new graduates complete an evaluation of the entire program, which often includes sharing their new insights, places of increased community awareness, ability to use the skills they’ve learned, as well as what they hope to accomplish in their personal and professional lives. I have often wondered how much of their Coro training continues to influence their view of and approach to the world. In this month’s e-newsletter, you will have the opportunity to hear about alumni whose Coro training paved the way for their accomplishments.

In conversations with alumni, I’ve heard that an individual who has gone through Coro training learns a set of skills such that they can go into any situation (familiar or unfamiliar) and be able to ask questions to determine what’s going on and to get a lay of the land (whether in a team, organization, community or country); understand who are the stakeholders and what sectors are affected; identify the critical problems and issues; and then begin working with a diverse team of individuals to create a plan to solve the problem at hand. What would it be like to have those kinds of skills available to your business, nonprofit, labor union or government office? How would our democracy run differently if individuals with those abilities were leading our cities, counties, and states?

That’s the value of Coro Leadership Center – St. Louis to the area – the impact of the efforts of our participants and alumni. This is the basis of our commitment to the region: to train more and more individuals with our rigorous, experiential, community-based leadership development programs.

- Dawn Stringfield, President & CEO

WIGO (What is going on)!

Connected Women Event - Women Making a Difference

September 3, 2009, 7:30-9:00 am
The Knight Center, Washington University in St. Louis

A panel discussion, featuring significant women leaders in the St. Louis community, will focus on the many ways (familiar and new) in which women can and do give back to St. Louis through personal and corporate philanthropy and volunteer leadership in a multitude of community organizations. St. Louis Rams owner and chair of community outreach, Lucia Rodriguez, will welcome panelists, Joyce Aboussie, President, Aboussie and Associates; Adrian Bracy, CEO, YWCA Metro St. Louis; and Ellen Sherberg, Publisher, St. Louis Business Journal. Mandy Murphey of Fox 2 will moderate the discussion.

The Boeing Company, St. Louis Business Journal, St. Louis Rams, and Washington University in St. Louis Olin School of Business and Executive MBA Program are the generous sponsors of the Connected Women Series.

Cost is $15.00 and registration can be done online at www.coro-stl.org/events or via phone at 636.827.9801

Alums in the News and on the Move

Congratulations to Michael Holmes, a 1990 St. Louis Coro Fellows Program graduate, who was recently featured in the St. Louis Business Journal. Holmes now works as Executive Vice President, Strategy, Human Capital & Emerging Markets at Express Scripts, having recently come out of retirement from his work at Edward Jones. In the feature, Michael mentioned that his time as a St. Louis Coro Fellow made an important connection for him in his career: “I was at Edward Jones for eight-and-a-half years. I was approached by John Bachmann, then the managing partner, who was being advised by a recruiter named Bob Berra. Berra is the same person who was the head of human resources for Monsanto many years before. I met him during an internship with the Coro Foundation, and he hired me at Monsanto after I graduated from Washington U.”

Senayt Rahwa, a 2008 St. Louis Coro Fellows Program graduate and now a second year law student at Georgetown in DC had the opportunity to travel to Beijing this summer to work for the international law firm Lehman, Lee & Xu. She competed in a tournament this year for the Alternative Dispute Resolution team at Georgetown and was one of 16 members selected from over 150 students. As a member of this team, she will also represent Georgetown at the International Commercial Mediation Competition in Paris in spring of 2010.

Senayt wrote us from London, where she is taking an international climate change and litigation course, and said that her review of Coro tools helped prepare her for the mediations and oral advocacy. “I looked over my Coro notes and used the tools Listening and Facilitating. [They were] so crucial.” Senayt will live in DC this year with Nisha Abraham & Margot Dankner, also 2008 St. Louis Fellows.

Sharon Rohrbach, founder of Nurses for Newborns, current President of Dynamic Change, LLC and Women in Leadership Class 35, was a guest of honor at the White House by invitation of President Obama on June 30. Her visit was part of an event unveiling legislation to create a social innovation fund for charities. "I thought it was a tremendous validation of my last 19 years of work to hear the leader of the free world ... saying that solutions have to come from the grass-roots level," said Rohrbach after returning from her trip to Washington, D.C. Congratulations, Sharon!

From http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/2009/06/29/daily55.html

What’s your experience with the Coro methodology? Share the ways in which you use your training and we will include it in an upcoming newsletter or on the Coro website.

Or are you a Coro Alum or know one with a new job? Appointed or elected to a board or committee? New exciting event? Please share your news by contacting Abigail Heinz (Abigail@coro-stl.org) or (636) 827-9804.

Check out our website for a complete list of alumni updates.

Placements

We are currently seeking Government Placements for our incoming class of Fellows. If you have a possibility for a Government Placement, please contact Abigail Heinz by September 4.

Reminder of this year’s calendar of placements:

Upcoming Events

Washington University Executive MBA Program Summer Networking Events

Build Your Business Network: Women’s Networking Event
November 12, 2009
5:30-7:00 p.m.

Build Your Business Network: Diversity Networking Event
November 19, 2009
5:30-7:00 p.m.

Charles F. Knight Executive Education and Conference Center
RSVP to emba@wustl.edu, to 314-935-3622, or at www.olin.wustl.edu/emba

Keeping Up with Coro Programs

Women In Leadership

We are pleased to announce that Mary Ann Moore will be training WIL Class 53. Mary Ann is an alumna of WIL Class 9 and has trained previous WIL classes. She will be an excellent addition to the Coro staff.

Selection Day for Women In Leadership Class 53 will be held on the evening of Thursday, August 20, 2009. We are very excited about this group of candidates. Please contact Anne Walker at 636.827.9801 or anne@coro-stl.org, to be a judge.

Applications are now being accepted for WIL Classes 54 and 55 (Spring 2010 and Fall 2010, respectively). Nominations for WIL are welcomed at any time. To nominate someone, please contact Kari Brownholland at kari@coro-stl.org.

Fellows Program in Public Affairs

The Fellows Program in Public Affairs Class of 2010 will begin on September 1. We are thrilled to bring this diverse group of individuals to St. Louis.

Fellow, School, Major/Minor, Age, Hometown and State

Alumni News and Events

WILAA Elects New Board Members and Officers

2009 Coro Women in Leadership Alumnae Association (WILAA) Board of Directors

President: Brynn Palmer
Vice President: Cathie Farroll
Secretary: Christi Dixon
Treasurer: Julie Steininger
Co-Chairs, Alumni Relations: Quen Agnew & Reena Hajat
Co-Chairs, Events: Mary Ann Moore & Laura Rossmann
Co-Chairs, Marketing & Communications: Julie Lawson & Michelle Matthews
Members at Large:
Patricia Reed-Boswell
Jackie Faber
Paula Hughes

The WILAA Board has opportunities for interested alumnae. If you are a graduate of the Women in Leadership program and would like to serve in a board or committee position, please contact Abigail Heinz at (636) 827-9804 or visit the website at: http://wilaa.coro.org

Immediate Needs: The Alumni Relations and Events Committees need your help! If you would like to help welcome recent graduates to the Alumnae Association or plan outstanding networking and professional development events, please let us know. Each committee meets an average of once per month and provides great networking opportunities for its members. Your help is greatly needed and appreciated!

Missouri Black Expo College Fair Seeks Volunteers

As part of the “GEAR UP Student Parent Leadership Summit” held at the Missouri Black Expo (MBE) each year, MBE hosts a College Fair for GEARUP-ST. LOUIS participants.Due to cutbacks in professional recruitment, MBE is in need of volunteers who are willing to represent their college or university at the College Fair.

The College Fair occurs Aug 22: 10:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m & Aug 23: 11:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.at America’s Center in St. Louis (701 Convention Plaza). There is no cost to represent your college/university and you do not have to be present for all hours of the fair. For more information or to volunteer, please contact Kaye Bailey 314-361-5772 or bailey_Kathleen@hotmail.

Coro Alumni Opportunities

Coro National Alumni Association (CNAA)

2009 National Alumni Gathering
November 6 - 8, 2009
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Please join the Coro National Alumni Association for a weekend gathering of Coro alumni and friends in wonderful Pittsburgh to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Coro Pittsburgh Center!

Click Here to Register

Support Coro

Volunteer

We are contacting hundreds of organizations this summer; we would appreciate volunteers to help with phone calls. You will be supplied with a script and supporting materials. Contact Abigail Heinz with questions or interest.

Check the website www.coro-stl.org for a complete list of current volunteer needs.

Donate

The Coro Leadership Center – St. Louis would not be possible without donations from our supporters. Please contact Abigail Heinz to make a donation. You can also make a donation online at www.coro-stl.org or mail donations to:

Coro Leadership Center – St. Louis
Attn: Abigail Heinz
1325 N. Highway Drive
Fenton, MO 63099

Staff Directory

Kari Brownholland – Program Manager
Kari@coro-stl.org (636) 827-9805

Abigail Heinz – Community Relations Manager
Abigail@coro-stl.org (636) 827-9804

Andrew McIntire – Communications Associate
Andrew@coro-stl.org

Gerty O’Leary – Director of Training and Programs
Gerty@coro-stl.org (636) 827-9803

Dawn Stringfield – President and CEO
Dawn@coro-stl.org (636) 827-9802

Anne Walker – Administrative Associate
Anne@coro-stl.org (636) 827-9801