GOT MILK? James Hafer joined the leadership program to become a more effective communicator. He is pictured communicating with a cow water buffalo during a visit to southern China in 2002 as part of a USDA Foreign Agricultural Service trip.

What makes a good leader? Maenette Benham, an education professor studying leadership and diversity, writes that leadership is “interactive and inclusive, and has at its focus the health and welfare of people, the good of the community, and the celebration of life” (The Renaissance of American Indian Higher Education, 2003:16).For tribal college educators to meet these high expectations, Benham asks: “How do we provide opportunities for our faculty to have meaningful experiences with other tribal college and Native-serving institutions’ faculty as well as mainstream university and college faculty?”The success of our tribal college land grant mission depends on leaders who will meet the challenges of a complex and changing future. Yet the daily demands on educators make finding leadership development experiences difficult. The question remains: How can tribal college educators find opportunities to develop as successful leaders?

Fortunately, there is a program that answers this call. In June 2005, the inaugural class of the Leadership Development for the 21st Century: Linking Research, Academics and Extension (LEAD21) began a 12-month program designed to explore different models of leadership, develop peer networks, and enhance skills and knowledge in leadership competencies. While other leadership development programs have focused on senior-level administrators, LEAD21 is specifically for land grant educators.

LEAD21 is sponsored by the land grant system — a group of colleges and universities with a Congressional mandate to provide practical education in the agricultural, biological, and human sciences. In 1994, tribal colleges were welcomed into the land grant system and are known as the 1994 land grant institutions. LEAD21 participants come from the 1994 land grant institutions as well as the older land grant institutions: state universities, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and U.S. territorial institutions.

James Hafer (Northern Cheyenne), program director and an instructor in agricultural and natural resource sciences at Chief Dull Knife College (Lame Deer, MT), is enrolled in the program. Hafer is one of two tribal college participants out of 77 total participants. He decided to apply to the LEAD21 program to become a more effective teacher and communicator by improving his interpersonal skills. But Hafer also sees a strong public relations and networking aspect to the program.

Speaking of the need to raise awareness of tribal colleges throughout the land grant system, Hafer says, “If we’re not seen, we’re not heard. Sometimes tribal college faculty and staff have the reputation of being elusive. But we’re not. They need to know that we’re real people.” Hafer now interacts with a national peer network of teachers, researchers, and community specialists working in all types of disciplines.

Hafer’s peers have much to learn from the leadership at tribal colleges. In The Nations Within: The Past and Future of American Indian Sovereignty, Vine Deloria, Jr. and Clifford Lytle say that Native leadership is founded on spiritual values and principles of community and shared responsibility, in contrast to Western leadership models based on authoritative and hierarchical relationships within institutional structures.

Valorie Johnson, in The Renaissance of American Indian Higher Education, finds that tribal college leaders have a commitment to serving their communities through social change and that they have the voice and courage to take risks for their people. She also sees tribal college leaders as cross-cultural boundary travelers who inspire the world with hope. These are important leadership principles to be shared.

LEAD21 consists of three intense sessions combined with independent learning. The first session is a week-long “360-degree” self-evaluation using some of the most advanced assessment models in the leadership field.

Participants learn about their leadership qualities from their own perceptions and from those of their workmates: Do you consider yourself an efficient and forceful leader or a relaxed and caring one? Are you an introvert or an extrovert? Do you plan ahead or charge forth at the last minute?

Some participants were surprised that their own perceptions didn’t match the perceptions of their workmates. Simulated project meetings were then videotaped so that participants could watch themselves in action. How does this knowledge of self make a better leader?

Leadership is essentially a social process, and knowing how you behave in groups shows your interpersonal strengths and areas for improvement. For example, knowing that workmates find you overly controlling might suggest that you should delegate responsibilities more and manage less. If others see you as highly introverted and hard to know, you might want to open up a bit.

Some four months later, the second session involves three days of field visits to communities, higher education institutions, and non-profit partners to explore issues of diversity, integrated problem solving, and innovative collaboration. This year, LEAD21 will visit a 1994 land grant institution and a historically Black land grant institution.

Hispanic, African-American, and American Indian community visits will focus on youth development, natural resources, and economic development. Rural families, tribal leaders, and under-served groups will be asked frankly how higher education contributes to their lives and how it does not.

The third session takes place in Washington, DC, around February, and focuses on public policy. Participants will meet with policy makers and learn how local issues interact with the national agenda. For instance, participants may discuss how local water quality concerns can shape federal policy and what role tribal colleges could play in that process. The complex federal authorization and budgeting processes are also explained by experienced legislative and executive staff.

After completing the first session, Hafer called LEAD21 “one of the most genuine opportunities for self-reflection” he has experienced. For those tribal college educators who are considering LEAD21, Hafer’s advice is to set aside any hesitation or discomfort and “just do it.” The program teaches that we have to step outside our comfort zone to experience new opportunities, to meet new people, and to become effective leaders.

The LEAD21 program starts accepting applications each year in November for classes that begin in June. Scholarships are available to qualified tribal college applicants. For more information on LEAD21 and other leadership and professional development opportunities, contact John Phillips at jhnphll@aol.com.

Dr. John L. Phillips is the former USDA/AIHEC liaison, a position he held for 5 years. He was the first person to serve as a liaison, representing the interests of the 1994 land grant institutions at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In 2000, he received the USDA Secretary’s Honor Award for his work at Si Tanka College. Prior to becoming the liaison, he organized a 2- day conference on international outreach activities for tribally controlled colleges. Previously, he was a Peace Corps volunteer in Swaziland, Africa. He holds a Ph.D. degree in rural sociology. He is now working as an independent consultant in Columbia, MO, and can be reached at jhnphll@aol.com.