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Program Overview

The Certificate in Foundational Leadership is a 9-month individual leadership program designed to accelerate leadership skills through practical learning, mentorship, and assessments. The program is delivered in a hybrid format, combining in-person and virtual classes to provide students with opportunities for meaningful connection and flexibility.

Course Description

In this program, students will develop new techniques and knowledge to refresh and enhance their leadership skills. The program focuses on increasing self-awareness, developing strategies to lead and influence teams, enhancing the ability to work effectively with people of diverse identities, personalities, and abilities, improving interpersonal communication skills, and cultivating professional relationships through networking and mentorship.

What You'll Learn

• Increase your self-awareness of your leadership strengths and development areas.
  • Develop strategies to lead and influence teams, particularly through change.
  • Enhance your ability to work effectively with people of diverse identities, personalities, and abilities.
  • Improve your interpersonal communication skills, particularly in high-stakes situations.
  • Cultivate professional relationships through networking and mentorship.

Practical Learning

The program engages students in interactive exercises to learn and practice leadership skills. Using facilitators and guest speakers, carefully selected from Gonzaga's network of subject matter experts/practitioners, students have the opportunity to apply leadership concepts to real-life situations. Class sessions include case studies, scenario practice, and strategies in the following focus areas:

• Leadership identity and purpose
• Emotional intelligence
• Courageous communication
• Inclusive leadership
• Employee engagement
• Adaptive leadership
• Organizational change management

Assessments

The program includes three assessments with debriefs by certified practitioners:

• A "360 review" to identify strengths and growth areas.
• The ProfileXT Select to understand how you are "wired".
• An Emotional Intelligence profile to highlight emotional intelligence patterns and strategies during stress.

Mentorship

Students are matched with a seasoned and respected leader based on their personality, professional development areas, and field. The expectation is that students meet with their mentor once a month for 1-2 hours from November to May.

Assignments

Each month, students complete a practical assignment that applies their learning to their work, graded on a Pass/Fail basis. These assignments may require approximately 8-10 hours of work per month.

Format

The program is a hybrid of both in-person and virtual classes, providing students with opportunities for meaningful connection while also offering flexibility and convenience. All in-person classes are mandatory and take place either in or near Spokane, Washington. The general schedule includes:

• Independent, personalized assessments in September
• An overnight retreat in October
• 4-hour Zoom classes two Fridays per month in November, January, and March
• Full-day, in-person classes in December, February, April, and May

Credits

• Grading is on a Pass/Fail basis.
• Upon completion, students receive a Certificate from Gonzaga University and 15 Continuing Education credits on a Gonzaga University transcript.
• Students who successfully complete a School of Leadership Studies certificate program have the option of applying a maximum of 3 credits towards completion of a Masters in Organizational Leadership, Masters in Communication and Leadership, or Masters in Business Administration (MBA) at Gonzaga, contingent upon admission and within 5 years of certificate completion.

Tuition and Fees

• The Certificate Fee is $8,900.00.
• Eligible for an installment plan with a 15.0% deposit and 6 installments.
• Potential discounts are available for 501(c)3 employees, government agency employees, military, veterans, or first responders, public K-12 employees, and referrals.

CEUs

The program offers 15 Continuing Education Units (CEUs). The CEU is a nationally recognized means to document participation in organized non-credit continuing education, with one CEU defined as 10 contact hours of participation in organized continuing education under qualified instruction.

Instructor

The program is led by Jill Yashinsky-Wortman, a Professional Certified Coach with extensive experience in coaching and organizational leadership. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from St. Norbert College and a Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership from Gonzaga University.