Local Leadership Program Holds Final Session of the Year

Greg Wise and Robin Whyte on the “Board Boot Camp” panel.

Baraboo - On May 11, seventeen Sauk County Institute of Leadership (SCIL) participants (“SCIL-sters” for short), met at the Town of Fairfield Hall for their ninth and final session of the 2022 - 2023 leadership program.  It was only fitting that one of the panelists for the day was Greg Wise, a veteran of multiple non-profit boards of directors and the man who started SCIL 25 years ago.  Robin Whyte, Executive Director of the Community Foundation of South Central Wisconsin, joined Wise for the discussion and the two shared about their involvement as members of boards of directors, as well their encouragement to SCIL-sters to ask thoughtful questions of organizations that may approach them to serve on their board. 

As the day continued, SCIL-sters revisited highlights from each of the previous sessions and the recurring themes that were embedded across all nine sessions, including: networking via connections, positively reframing situations, listening intently to what is said and unsaid, and serving with humility and vulnerability.

Cliff Thompson, retired superintendent of Sauk Prairie School District,  joined the group in the afternoon.  He imparted on the group that closure means new beginnings.  Thompson prompted the group to think about how each time they rise to the occasion, they will be preparing the way for future leaders.  Led by Thompson’s example, SCIL-sters affirmed the leadership qualities they’d seen in each other over the past nine months.  

The day came to a close at the Aldo Leopold Foundation, where docent Alan Anderson shared about his connections with the Leopold family and the legacy of learning they’ve left in our area and throughout the world.  In the beauty of nature, the group listened and observed the influential surroundings of Leopold’s shack and further pondered what they’d learned together over the past months.  

Written By: Rebecca Kirch and Sara Jesse