Leadership Programs

If you are wondering what counts as a leader in this cohort, here is what we’re looking for:

• People who are passionate about trans and other social justice movements.

• People who are interested in building community among a diverse transgender and gender-expansive group.

• People who want to be change makers and advocates for the transgender and gender expansive community.

• People who understand that leaders can come from any lived experience, background, identity or field. Our leaders unite around their shared passion for change.

• People who are driven and want to expand their skills around leadership, and are comfortable with periodic readings and assignments that can be completed at their own pace.

Goal of the Catalyst Leadership Cohort Program

Our goal is to increase leadership capacity and champion transgender social justice and other equity initiatives that advance aspiring trans and gender-expansive leaders while building community among participants who are all transgender, nonbinary, or gender-expansive.

Major Program Components Include:

• Opening Virtual Retreat

• Development of Leadership Plans

• Monthly workshops, readings, and assignments

• Monthly community-building sessions

• Closing Retreat and Celebration

• Virtual opening retreat at 4 hours a day (with breaks) on a consecutive Saturday and Sunday.

• Four weekend convenings over four months, alternating between in-person and virtual. In-person convenings at 6 hours a day (with breaks) on a consecutive Saturday and Sunday. Virtual convenings at 4.5 hours a day on either a Saturday or Sunday, as selected by the cohort.

• Monthly community building sessions on the first Tuesday or Thursday for 90-minutes.

• In-person closing retreat at 6 hours a day (with breaks) on a consecutive Saturday and Sunday

Schedule Breakdown:

• 1st Cohort Meeting, Opening Retreat: Virtual

• 2nd Cohort Meeting: In-Person

• 3rd Cohort Meeting: Virtual

• 4th Cohort Meeting: In-Person

• 5th Cohort Meeting: Virtual

• 6th Cohort Meeting, Closing Retreat: In-Person

Cost

This program is completely free of charge! All materials, as well as room and board (for in-person retreats), are provided. Funding is available to reimburse for necessary childcare expenses and for travel expenses, if in-person retreats are planned.

Cohort Commitment:

If accepted, you will be coming to the following:

• Fully participate in an opening retreat, to be held February 23 OR February 24 (on-line)

• Patriciate in all cohort gatherings on the weekends below:

  March 30 - Mar 31 (in-person)

  April 26 OR April 27 (virtual)

  May 31 - June 1 (in-person)

  June 28 OR June 29 (on-line)

• Fully participate in the closing retreat July 27 – July 28 (in-person)

• Participate in monthly community building sessions, to be held weeknights Cohort will decide dates.

• Complete periodic assignments to ground the learnings from the Catalyst virtual circles in work and/or in life.

• Each participant will be expected to collaborate and develop an individual leadership development plan that you get to work on over the course of the Cohort, at your own pace during the year.

• Invest the time and effort in a diverse peer learning community by actively contributing knowledge, skills, and insights.

• Contribute toward a safe and trusting learning environment for self and peers by respecting and honoring the need for confidentiality and differences of opinion, learning style, ethnicity, gender, age, sexual orientation, etc.

• Participate in approximately three check-in calls during the program for purposes of assessing your thoughts and progress of your leadership journey.

• Permit Basic Rights Oregon to use photographs on the website, both a headshot and candid photos from retreats, and quotes regarding program experiences and participation.