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EDITORIAL RICHARD STRAND, DPA

YEARS

& COUNTING

HAPPY

ANNIVERSARY

TO US!

Twenty-fve years and counting—happy anniversary to us! “Participatory Leadership: Building Trust and Improving
When the planning started for our 25th Annual International Student Success at the Alamo Colleges.” In it, Dr. Leslie
Leadership Conference in early 2013, we barely had an inkling outlines a guiding philosophy and strategy for achieving their
of what we wanted to accomplish. vision. One of the key aspects of this strategy is the notion that
Naturally, we were seeking an inviting venue at an afordable there is a “leader in every seat.”
price in a great location. We think we fulflled that desire with We tend to think of leadership in more one-dimensional
the selection of La Cantera in beautiful San Antonio, Texas. terms - a dimension dominated by titles and positions, job
Second, we had an interest in welcoming back a few of the highest- descriptions and portfolios. What is insightful about the Alamo
rated keynote speakers we have included in the past 25 years; we approach is that it recognizes what Mark Sanborn also profers,
invited back Sandy Shugart, Mark Taylor, and Clifon Taulbert - all “You don’t need a title to be a leader.”
for repeat performances. According to the conference evaluations, Tis said, while leadership DNA may be found in any of us, and
each of them exceeded our highest expectations. at any time we may be called upon to use it, the notion that the
Finally, we wanted to make the centerpiece a strong list right person will be in the right place at the right time is far
of concurrent and roundtable sessions to fully engage less likely unless we are intentionally dedicated to the general
our participants; to focus their attention and invite their development of leadership talent throughout the depth and
contributions on issues that span the globe related to post- breadth of our organizations; if not those in every seat, then
secondary education. We were fortunate to have close to 40 certainly a broad spectrum of those involved.
quality sessions involving 64 presenters in fve rounds - none of For over two decades the Chair Academy has been singularly
which were repeated - a point of frustration for some of us who focused on developing leadership talent in post-secondary
simply couldn’t decide among several great choices. institutions on a global scale. It therefore seemed most
But the very best part, as has been the case in years past, was appropriate that in this edition, we have as the centerpiece
to welcome back so many repeat attendees, some of whom have of our thought process the themes and things we should be
attended virtually every conference since our frst in 1992, mindful of as we seek to be more intentional about developing
along with a high number of frst-timers who found their way the leadership talent around us.
to San Antonio for their inaugural experience. Tey came from No one formula may work for all of us, but the general idea of
as far away as Australia, South Africa, and Bermuda, as well as building leadership capacity is one that requires anticipation,
from states and provinces across the USA and Canada. efort, and energy. Te authors and institutions represented in
While representing diferent countries and cultures, they this edition individually and collectively serve to remind us
unifed around the singular purpose of engaging in discussions that if we truly value leadership, then designing the processes
that centered on the conference theme, Leading by Design. and programs necessary to grow leadership talent is an
essential commitment we must make. Now it’s on to number 26
In December, 2014 Chancellor Bruce Leslie of the Alamo in Orlando!
College District (our conference host) authored a memo titled,

LEADERSHIP Vol. 22.1 Spring/Summer 2016 3

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