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Scholarships to Let America be America Again
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"Let America be America again.
Let it be the dream it used to be.
Let it be the pioneer on the plain
Seeking a home where he himself is free...
O, yes,
I say it plain,
America never was America to me,
And yet I swear this oath-
America will be!"
Langston Hughes's words motivate me to offer you a substantial scholarship in
Reconciliation Leadership--practical, inclusive idealists. In
the fifteenth year celebration of the Institute for Global Leadership, it is my pleasure to offer you a special rate for the
leadership model I developed, practiced and taught in the United Nations for 25 years.
I'm inviting you to become a stakeholder in a process to heal our country, to facilitate America's soul destiny at home and in the world, in a respectful, caring way, during this contentious election year.
To learn more about my thinking on the soul of America, see some of the advance endorsements for my forthcoming book, below, My Soul Journey to Redefine Leadership: A New Phoenix Rises from the Ashes of 9/11.
You may apply Reconciliation Leadership to any job, career or vocation you already have. The program addresses the healing of the relationship of men and women, reconnecting families, and addressing conflicts that divide our country. Trainees' mission and purpose serve as a foundation upon which to build a toolbox that includes developing personal, interpersonal, systemic and global skills.
As a potential
Reconciliation Leader,
will you join me to awaken and heal America's soul by awakening and healing your own soul? Claiming your mission and purpose and knowing why you are here is a first step. You will also learn tools, new perspectives and skills to navigate your life journey. In the advanced program, you will step up to your patch on the patchwork quilt of America's soul destiny through learning to facilitate the spiritual renaissance of the p
eacebuilding process of reconciliation to develop political will, the will of the people.
- "Reconciliation Leadership has reaffirmed for me the importance of being an integrated human being and the strength and necessity of this integration for the practice of leadership" - Dr. Sarah Sayeed, Public Servant, New York
- "I was looking for an approach to reconciliation that is guided by spiritual sensitivity, and I found it in Virginia. That is why my meeting with her was not just a coincidence. I therefore have no doubt in my mind that Virginia's work of reconciliation will be heralded, one day, as a vital tool in addressing and transforming violent conflicts. -Sam Onapa, Reconciliation Leader, Staff, African Union, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
- "Virginia is able to work with a vast range of participants from young students to seasoned diplomats and professionals, engaging them in a process that opens their hearts and minds to new ways of engaging and co-creating peace and leadership." Anna Sandidge, Reconciliation Leader, St. Louis Missouri
Brooke applied Reconciliation Leadership to her family and parenting after she took a sabbatical from teaching a few years after her Reconciliation Leadership training:
- My parenting skills are based on my mission statement, the perspectives, tools and techniques of Reconciliation Leadership." -Brooke Belcher Bishara, Reconciliation Leader and Former 6th GradeTeacher, Bancroft School
I was invited to present the Global Mediation and Reconciliation Service, Reconciliation Leadership and case studies of the Service to the Hague Appeal for Peace (1999) and The State of the World Forum (1999 and 2001) because the
current leadership model in the United Nations, the United States and around the world has features of elitism that do not tap the resources needed to resolve the global problematique, the complex issues of the human condition. For example, exclusionary political words like "high level" and "eminent persons" which are part of the organizational discourse, reflect a tendency to exclude those lacking in power and status, rather than evoke the cooperative.
My concern about the only superpower in the UN, my country, leads me to re-focus all my efforts to empower the people of the United States. My plan of action to facilitate America's soul destiny at home and in the world draws on 25 years of experience and resources in my calling at the United Nations.
So many people are disenfranchised on all sides of the political process. it's time to step back and revision our country. Reconciliation Leaders have respectful and celebratory ways to heal historic conflict patterns in the US as well as address the needs of people who are living in the underbelly and shadow of America as America's disenfranchised.
Everyone is needed. We, the people of this country, all have a life mission and purpose and are desperately needed to join the patchwork quilt to heal America's soul--every patch and mission is important to the whole. Will you join me as I step up to my patch?
Read two papers on Reconciliation Leadership:
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Announcement
I am pleased to announce that my new book will be published late this fall,
My
Soul Journey to Redefine Leadership: A New Phoenix Rises from the Ashes of 9/11. (Phoenix)
I was in New York City during the World Trade Center attack. I write about a dream of a new Phoenix rising from the ashes of 9/11, America's soul. The Phoenix is a transformative and regenerative bird. My experience showed me a new way to look at 9/11, encouraging me to heal and address the soul needs of the U.S. that the Phoenix brings.
This book was written to inspire you to join me to address what Thomas Moore wrote in
Care of the Soul: A Guide for Cultivating Depth and Sacredness in Everyday Life: "When the soul is neglected, it appears symptomatically in obsessions, addictions, violence and loss of wisdom. We have lost our wisdom and even our interest in the soul."
A Few Advance Endorsements
"I echo Virginia's disappointment that the phoenix rising from the ashes of World War II depicted in the UN Security Council mural has not witnessed the end of the cycle of violence in our world. But I share her determination, as she says, to "restore faith in humanity by redefining leadership, politics and politician so that all people will find their patch on the patchwork quilt of the Divine Plan." My intellectual journey for the culture of peace with Virginia will always have a special place in my heart and soul.May this book enjoy wide readership and a deep internalization of its inspiring message." --
Excerpted from the Foreword of Phoenix by
Ambassador Anwarul K. Chowdhury, Former Under-Secretary-General and High Representative of the United Nations, Founder of The Global Movement for The Culture of Peace (GMCoP), Initiator of the UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on "Women and Peace and Security"
"A chronicle of a soul-searching, spirit-guided life showing how a deep love of humanity is beautifully expressed through a life of service based on compassion."
Iris Spellings, Representative to the United Nations, Peace Through Unity, Brooklyn, New York
"Virginia Swain has given us an inspiring spiritual autobiography that interweaves a journey of
personal healing with a divinely-inspired engagement in healing humanity's collective wounds through Reconciliation Leadership and the Peacebuilding Process of Reconciliation."
Russell Boulding, author of Preparing Ourselves for the Great Shift (2008) and editor of Elise Boulding: A Pioneer in Peace Research, Peacemaking, Feminism, Future Studies and the Family (2008), Indianapolis, Indiana
"Virginia's life journey reflects the pressing need for all of us to reexamine our deeply held assumptions about the meaning of effective leadership, the role of peacemakers in violent and nonviolent conflict zones, and the meaning of spirituality and its link to building peace individually and collectively. Her life story can inspire us in how to overcome our struggle to build and sustain difficult relationships, especially within the context of international and intergovernmental organizations who tend to resist trans-formative change. Virginia's message of practicing love and compassion is crucial to effectively meet the challenges we face."
Dr. Mohammed Abu-Nimer, Professor of Peace and Conflict Resolution, American University, Washington , D.C.
"Virginia Swain is more than an amazing author and teacher. She is a world leader, a peace-maker whose words can activate the same visions and qualities within others' hearts. Just as she rose like a Phoenix, her story can help us all do the same."
Cyndi Dale, author of over 20 books, including
The Subtle Body series, Minneapolis, Minnesota
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America's soul can be healed if each person steps up to their patch on the patchwork quilt of our destiny--every soul is important and none is above or below anyone else. Jung said "Only when the individual understands the duality of her/his nature and capacity for evil as well as good can he/she begin to understand and cope with the potential threat of those in power."
Schedule your
free consultation to see if Reconciliation Leadership fits you and your path to leadership and you'd like to take advantage of my offer of scholarship assistance.
Sincerely,
Virginia Swain
Founder and Director
Institute for Global Leadership
32 Hill Top Circle
Worcester, MA 01609
508-753-4172 or 508-245-6843 (cell)
774-243-9299 (fax)
@VirginiaSwain (twitter)
Virginia Swain's Google Plus Page
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