DEIB Executive Leadership Cohort 1: Program Onsite in Panama
Felicidades and parabens to the 38 heads of schools, superintendents, and senior leaders representing over 14 LATAM countries who participated in last weekend’s DEIB Executive Leadership Onsite at International School of Panama. A special thanks to Audrey C. Menard, Ed.D. for inviting us to ISP's beautiful campus in Panama City.
Building on concepts that we explored during virtual sessions, the onsite objectives leveraged the Intercultural Development Continuum as a conceptual framework for introspection and developing Inclusive Leadership and Intercultural Competency.
Day 1
On Day 1, we reviewed individual Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) results and implications for personal growth. The IDI provides a cross-cultural and validated metric to understand the disjuncture between how an individual perceives how they understand and interact with others versus how they may be actually experienced by others. Participants were courageous, vulnerable, and appreciated the ability to learn from sharing personal stories and experiences.
Day 2
On Day 2, we leveraged Leading Global Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, which I typically use for my business clients, but soon realized that the strategies are equally instructive for any global organization. Dr. Rohini Anand PhD's transversal approach--which argues that global DEIB efforts must be flexible and adaptive while integrating local dynamics--was a meaningful framework to enhance country and school specific strategies. Afterward, we engaged in our second case study to build capacity specifically related to racism in international schools.
We ended our program by synthesizing learnings into actionable school plans, which will be iterated during our sessions, providing personal accountability and continuous progress.
The Power of Food
And let's not forget the power of food in fostering connections! I curated every meal, in collaboration with ISP’s chef, Jalil Mendoza, to showcase Panamanian cuisine-- from patacones to pixbae ceviche, corvina to empanadas de plátano, arepas de yuca to guyaba juice. We ate well.
We also enjoyed Afro-Panamanian cuisine from chef, Isaac Villaverde, whose restaurant, La Tapa del Coco, is a must-visit in Panama City. Isaac spent time with our cohort, sharing his personal journey to become a proud ambassador of Afro-Panamanian cuisine.
I am immensely proud of Cohort 1's growth and commitment to DEIB. I am thrilled about our ongoing efforts to deepen belonging in American and International Schools in LATAM.