Woodhull Institute Fellows Project:
About the Project
The NCPC has launched an exciting initiative in partnership with the Woodhull Institute for Ethical Leadership. We are selecting young Native American women who have potential as leaders and who are committed to following traditional ways, who are either Dancers or who are living on the reservation in the Intermountaine area. The Woodhull training enhances their sense of empowerment and trains them in techniques for ethical, effective leadership. It gets them off the reservations, provides intensive training, ongoing support and networking and puts them back in their communities to function as leaders.
The Woodhull Institute programs train women to "lead with honesty, respect, courage and compassion, to strive for the common ground in decision-making and to share in community service." It offers empowerment courses on financial literacy and basic business skills, public speaking, negotiation and advocacy, writing, ethics in the workplace, networking and acquiring mentoring relationships.
All too often in traditional communities, talented women are not encouraged or trained to step forward as leaders nor are they trained in the specific skills that make this effective. Woodhull teaches them to do this well.
NCPC's partnership with the Woodhull Institute allows us to select young Native American women who are already committed to traditional ways and to provide this training for them, which would enrich them personally and help their communities with effective, proven leadership skills.
NCPC was honored to sponsor Marian Snow, Mohawk from the Kahnawake Reserve in Canada, as our first Fellow. Marian attended the Dance of All Nations in 2004 and 2005 where she performed a pan-Indian Jingle Blessing Dance. As a Woodhull Fellow, she attended a three-day Intensive Leadership Training session in New York State and came away with a stronger sense of her own capabilities and how she could help people on the Reserve. She has already been asked to be a spokesperson on Native culture and governance to the outside world.
Marian Snow