Leaders are C.O.O.L.

Roger S. Baskin, Sr.Lake Braddock Secondary

About the Presenter

• Currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Education Leadership at George Mason University

• Served seven years as a pastor in both Alexandria City and Accomack County, Virginia

• Served as the manager of the QUEST Program• Husband and father of four beautiful children• English teacher at Lake Braddock Secondary

Brief Overview

• Identify characteristics of effective leaders

• Learn about being C.O.O.L

• Answer questions you may have about leadership

A Need for Leadership?

There are students at your school who are bullied because of their hair color.

Many people notice this but very few do anything about it other than talk in small groups at lunch time about how terrible it is to pick on this small group of students. Some eventually join in and ridicule those students too. People are afraid to say something about it for fear of being bullied too.

What Would a Leader Do?

Talk with one other person near you, and discuss the following questions:

1.Is there a need for leadership in this situation? Why or why not?

2.What could a leader do in this situation?3.What difference would a leader make for

everyone involved—the bullies and those who are bullied?

Characteristics of Leaders

Think about leaders you have seen in the past. Who would you consider to be a leader and why?

What Leaders Say about Leadership

Focusing your life solely on making a buck shows a certain poverty of ambition. It asks too little of yourself. Because it's only when you hitch your wagon to something larger than yourself that you realize your true potential.

President Barack Obama

What Leaders Say about Leadership

You do not lead by hitting people over the head - that's assault, not leadership.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower

What Leaders Say about Leadership

I decided not to let my past rule my future so I decided to change my present in order toopen up my future.

Dr. Ana M. GuzmanFirst woman president of Palo Alto College

Leaders are C.O.O.L.

• Change agents

• Open to various perspectives

• Observant of the needs of the people they serve

• Listeners

Change Agents

• Leaders see how things can improve.

• Leaders plan to make things better for everyone but particularly those who have been denied opportunity to grow in the past.

• Leaders act on what they believe.

Open to Various Perspectives

• Leaders are learners and seek the advice of people they trust.

• They seek opportunities to grow and so they can apply what they have learned to new problems.

Observant of Needs

• Leaders pay attention to people around them.

• They focus on the needs in their community, work, or family that have not been addressed.

• They problem solve around how to meet these needs.

Listeners

• Leaders listen to people they trust.

• They make sure to get perspectives from people who are knowledgeable about the problems they are trying to solve.

• They respect the opinions of others.

A Great Leader

A great leader is an ordinary person with extraordinary wisdom.

Malawian Proverb