Executive Director Development Program Completes Its Inaugural Year

NUSEA’s inaugural Leadership Fellows Program ended with a learning retreat to Chicago to visit MetroSquash. The program’s 12 Fellows consisted of four aspiring leaders from NUSEA member programs and eight Executive Directors. The 10-month professional development program gave participants the opportunity to meet with staff and Board members from other programs, share and observe best practices across organizations, and reflect on opportunities for growth in their own organizations. “The Leadership Fellows program supported and affirmed my goal to lead an urban squash program,” SquashWise’s Deputy Director Hope Blinkoff reflected. “The program provided me with the tools and confidence to challenge myself to be a stronger and more effective leader.”

Over the course of the year, the group traveled to Detroit, Boston, and Chicago to visit programs Racquet Up, SquashBusters, and MetroSquash respectively. In addition, individuals traveled to visit programs in San Diego, New York, San Francisco, and Cincinnati based on their interests and what they could learn from the different programs. Each month they joined together over the phone to discuss case studies and provide thoughts and support. Iago Cornes, who started as Urban Squash Cleveland’s Executive Director in 2015, commented that “Thanks to the Leadership Fellows program, I can now count on other organizations and their networks for feedback and sharing of ideas.”