Leaders Educated And Prepared

Frequently Asked Questions

LEAP: We're out to change the world...starting with ourselves.

Who teaches the LEAP program?

How long does it take to establish a LEAP?

Does a LEAP have to be student to student?

My school already has strong teachers and local and global connections, why do I need a LEAP program?

Do we have to use a global partner, or can our third partner be Americans in desperate situations?

How do I fund a LEAP if our organization does not have access to funds?

Do I have to follow the LEAP stages in order?

Can I join a LEAP group after it starts?

How much does LEAP cost?

Why LEAP?  What makes it different?

What distinguishes the LEAP to Lead curriculum from other leadership programs?

 

Who teaches the LEAP program?

Your choice.

LEAP leaders are educators, mediators, counselors, ministers, psychoanalysts, and entrepreneurs.

As consultants, we will help design, personalize, and implement your LEAP.

As teachers, we will collaborate and consult with your staff, teachers, social workers, guidance counselors, administration, and professionals to facilitate, train, or teach the curriculum for as long as you need.

LEAP leaders are available for follow-up consultation even after a program has been established.

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How long does it take to establish a LEAP?

Depending on the autonomy given to the teachers involved and the existing partners connected to your organization, schools have established LEAPs in as little as one month, and as long as one year.

The LEAP to Lead class: a 12 unit leadership class that meets for one and a half hours a week in homogeneous or diverse settings.

Time to Build a LEAP: Once the partners are united (meeting one time a week for one and a half hours), the LEAP team needs a minimum of 14 weeks to COLLABORATE with one or both partners and build a team of trust. To create a collaborative vision for sustainable change and begin to implement the vision, we need a minimum of six to eight weeks. The ideal LEAP is one that is established throughout a year, with a commitment to continue during the following year.

A trip can be planned at any time and ideally involves participants from every community, regardless of demographics. A two week trip is ideal.

We will design a LEAP around your calendar.

You can start a LEAP at any of the following points:

1. LEAP to Lead class

2. LEAP in Action

3. Trip

4. Design your own LEAP

Example:

LEAP would start with a local partner in the Fall, introduce the global partner in December, plan the trip in February or summer, and declare the outreach mission between March and May.
The best curriculum is one that has room to follow the passion of the group. This requires flexibility.

Other examples:

• LEAP can start with a trip/retreat, then add a local partner, with whom you break down barriers, explore perspectives, and take on a mission for the duration of the year.

• LEAP can start in a course with a mission already established—example: to create an environmental impact on the water in the town. The diverse team incorporates team building into their time together. The participants are trained to solve problems with ingenuity, collaboration, and education as they design and implement their outreach program.

• College “short terms” can launch a LEAP partnership that is maintained throughout the years.

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Does a LEAP have to be student to student?

No, in fact we encourage you to think outside the box and create LEAPs wherever you have a passion for change and an opportunity to build local and global community. We have created and envisioned musical LEAPs, Writer’s LEAPs, Medical LEAPs, Artistic LEAPs, Re-habilitation and Coaching LEAPs, Inter-faith LEAPs, etc. So, go ahead, decide who you would like to work with. You are not restricted by age or profession; you are united by potential.

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My school already has strong teachers and local and global connections, why do I need a LEAP program?

We honor the star teachers you have in your organization, and offer our services as a way for them to enrich what they currently teach. Think of LEAP as a consolidation of programs that already stretch you and your students in multiple directions.  LEAP transforms outreach from a hand out to a litmus test for education. See “WHY LEAP” and “Impact” for more information.

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Do we have to use a global partner, or can our third partner be Americans in desperate situations?

You can create an all American LEAP as long as it stays true to the LEAP mission to create informed citizens, impassioned visionaries, and committed activists who are empowered to collaborate with their partners to assess needs and implement an outreach program that will make a sustainable difference to the communities involved.

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How do I fund a LEAP if our organization does not have access to funds?

1. You need a sponsor.

2. You need to empower the larger community to support your determination to make a commitment to giving, not based on money, but on the spiritual dividend of an investment in oneself for the common good.

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Do I have to follow the LEAP stages in order? (see stages of a LEAP)

No, Some LEAPs will start with the global connection and add the local connection in time. The order is not as important as the curriculum and the commitment of the leaders to engage in a partnership based on empowerment.

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Can I join a LEAP group after it starts?

Yes, we would ask that you engage in a LEAP to Lead coaching class, either individually or in a group, to catch up to the team you are joining. Completion of the LEAP to Lead program ensures that a participant can join a LEAP local global program at Stage Four and take on a leadership role. Our goal is to make any LEAP work for you, your timeline and your participants.

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How much does LEAP cost?

LEAP does not charge for its services to facilitate the implementation of a LEAP. We cover our costs and ask that each organization cover their costs affiliated with the LEAP. Please budget for transportation, as most organizations and schools want to travel to meet their local and global partners.

If a teacher is needed, we would ask that you do everything possible to hire that teacher. If scholarships are needed, we will certainly do our best to support your endeavors with funding or shared fund-raising.

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Why LEAP?  What makes it different?

1. Diversity: To burst cultural bubbles and stretch students outside their comfort zone, LEAP is deliberately taught to a group of racially, culturally and socio-economically diverse students.

2. Experiential leadership: After taking the LEAP to Lead class, students will test their leadership skills to build diverse teams, break down cultural barriers, assess chronic issues and use ingenuity to successfully impact their world.

3. Initiative and Personal Growth: LEAP offers weekly individual and group coaching calls. Each peer to peer conversation identifies individual strategies needed to ensure the team members practice the threads of leadership to achieve their goals. When students are confident and ready, they are offered an opportunity to co-teach the LEAP to Lead class to their peers.

4. Accountability and Success: LEAP trains students to be accountable to their vision and committed to the success of their mission.

5. Enterprise: LEAP empowers each student to inspire mentors around the globe to support their endeavor to create something from nothing with people they don’t know.

 

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What distinguishes the LEAP to Lead curriculum from other leadership programs?

• The combination of the leadership curriculum with collaborative local and global outreach programs

• 3 distinct goals in a cycle of leadership:

1. Train self-aware leaders

2. Unite diverse communities

3. Impact the world

• Training, Coaching and Counseling

LEAP to Lead integrates weekly individual and group coaching calls to maintain a culture of integrity and accountability.

Each call is a check-in time to identify needed strategies to support the growth of the individual and the team’s action plan.

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