Academy at Middle Fork Selected as a 2021 Leadership Winston-Salem Action Learning Project Site

The Appalachian State University Academy at Middle Fork has been selected as a 2021 Action Learning Project site by Leadership Winston-Salem — these projects craft solutions to nonprofit and community dilemmas. These projects are solicited from community organizations, and teams of 6-8 leaders focus on both a deliverable and the leadership learning process itself through inquiry, reflection, and feedback. 

A Different Lens on Leadership

Academy principal, Tasha Hall-Powell ‘01 ‘09, submitted an application after her own experience as a participant in Leadership Winston-Salem’s Flagship Program 2020 cohort — a highly competitive program “designed to ignite community leaders with a mission of educating, connecting and energizing leaders to serve and improve the community.” During the year-long program, Hall-Powell participated in monthly action learning meetings where her cohort explored topics including poverty, healthcare, criminal justice, budgeting, and zoning. 

Academy principal, Tasha Hall-Powell, participates in Government Day, one of several activities at her Flagship Program cohort monthly action learning meetings. Government Day gave participants the opportunity to take part in a mock county commissioner session where Hall-Powell and members of her cohort researched and presented on community issues — zoning, food deserts, crime and more. This experience led to a better understanding of how local government operates. Photo submittedAcademy principal, Tasha Hall-Powell, participates in Government Day, one of several activities at her Flagship Program cohort monthly action learning meetings. Government Day gave participants the opportunity to take part in a mock county commissioner session where Hall-Powell and members of her cohort researched and presented on community issues — zoning, food deserts, crime, and more. This experience led to a better understanding of how local government operates. Photo submitted

Hall-Powell shared that this type of experiential learning provided a different lens on community leadership.

“As a professional educator, I was very pleased with my nine-month experience in the Flagship Leadership Program offered by Leadership Winston-Salem. It provided me with a wealth of information about the Winston-Salem community and Forsyth County’s innovation and business sector. Additionally, I gained a different lens on leadership — I saw the impact I could make through networking, sharing, and mentoring other leaders to grow in servant leadership. This, in turn, affects the local areas and populations that need the most support, including our very own students at the Academy.”

Hall-Powell participates in Arts Day, where she and her cohort explored arts-related facilities and resources in Winston-Salem. This experience generated ideas for future field trips for Academy students as well as organizations that the school could partner with for experiential learning. Photo submittedHall-Powell participates in Arts Day, where she and her cohort explored arts-related facilities and resources in Winston-Salem. This experience generated ideas for future field trips for Academy students as well as organizations that the school could partner with for experiential learning. Photo submitted

Action Learning Projects

Flagship Program cohorts also work on Action Learning Projects serving as diverse teams of non-experts to consider the dilemmas and advise on outcomes. This experience prompted Hall-Powell to submit an application on behalf of the Academy. 

The dilemma: find sustainable ways to increase the school’s visibility within Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and the greater Forsyth County.

The Academy was established as a lab school in the fall of 2018 and is a partnership between Appalachian’s Reich College of Education and Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools. The school prides itself on providing a balanced education through the implementation of research-based practices, state of the art literacy instruction, and exemplary classroom instruction and administration; however, now in its third year, the Academy continues to experience challenges related to awareness, connection, and collaboration, including:

  • Marketing to families and recruitment of eligible students;
  • Connection to local service providers;
  • Increased and sustainable collaboration with the community.

Hall-Powell pictured with Winston-Salem Mayor Allen Joines at her Leadership Winston-Salem’s Flagship Program 2020 cohort drive-through graduation in June, 2020. This was one of many connections that Hall-Powell made with local leaders and officials — connections that help Hall-Powell advocate for Academy students and families. Photo submittedHall-Powell pictured with Winston-Salem Mayor Allen Joines at her Leadership Winston-Salem’s Flagship Program 2020 cohort drive-through graduation in June 2020. This was one of many connections that Hall-Powell made with local leaders and officials — connections that help Hall-Powell advocate for Academy students and families. Photo submitted

Next Steps and Future Goals

The action learning team assigned to the Academy’s project will consider the dilemma over a period of seven months under the guidance of a coach, a previous Flagship Program graduate, who ensures that leadership learning takes place along with the work on deliverables. At the end of this period, the team will present its findings and recommendations to the partner agency for implementation. 

Hall-Powell, who serves as a resource to the action learning team for questions and information, hopes the team’s recommended outcomes will further the Academy’s core commitments — learning together, developing the whole child, boosting academics, and amplifying sustainability —  and will create a framework to better serve students, families and the community. 

About Leadership Winston-Salem

Leadership Winston-Salem, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charitable organization, began in 1984 by Thomas K. Hearn, Jr., Julius H. Corpening, and C. Edward Pleasants, to increase the understanding and commitment to the city’s future during a time of significant change. The mission of Leadership Winston-Salem – educating, connecting, and energizing leaders to serve and improve the community – guides everything they do. Their programs are all about building strong, lasting relationships with other leaders, learning more about the community, and being inspired to make a difference in the community.

About Leadership Winston-Salem’s Action Learning Projects

Action learning brings together a diverse team of “untainted” non-experts to explore a complex problem through a fresh set of eyes. In Leadership Winston-Salem, projects are solicited from community organizations, and teams of 6-8 leaders focus on both a deliverable and the leadership learning process itself through inquiry, reflection, and feedback. A team coach works with each team to ensure that the leadership learning takes place along with the work on deliverables. Class participants invest themselves in these projects, often experiencing a personal connection with their partner agency that extends beyond the end of the project. Partner agencies reap valuable benefits from this process – not only in the formal results of the project team’s work but also in the increased personal investment in the agency’s work by the project team and the increased visibility of the agency among all members of the class. This occurs on closing day when project teams report out to the class and the partner agencies. Project teams generally also present to the agency’s board of directors on their results.

About Leadership Winston-Salem’s Flagship Program

Leadership Winston-Salem’s Flagship Program is designed to ignite community leaders with a mission of educating, connecting, and energizing leaders to serve and improve the community. Likened to a “community MBA,” participants benefit through active engagement, attending one Program Day each month, and working in Action Learning teams to address an actual dilemma faced by a local agency. The program challenges participants to increase their personal and collective capacity to transform the community through civic engagement, servant leadership, and building social capital. 

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Published: Feb 11, 2021 1:12pm

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