A pedagogical community around Haskayne’s Adventure Leadership

Faculty members, instructional designer specialists, learning technologists, Indigenous Knowledge Keepers, risk analysts, teaching assistants, land guides, a Yogi and a martial arts Master are just some people who came together to make this year’s Adventure Leadership courses a meaningful experience for students at Haskayne. The course helped them develop skills for resiliency, finding purpose and ethical leadership presence at a time they needed it most.

The Wilderness Retreat has been offered since 2004, but this year things looked a little different – it went virtual. This year the course demanded a new learning model and completely different approach to risk management to meet the unique conditions unfolding under the uncertainties caused by COVID-19. This year, despite the Wilderness Retreat going virtual during the summer semester, it saw more students and more sections than ever before!

Dr. David Lertzman, instructor and founder of Wilderness Retreat, led this challenging transition to virtual. He tells us how creating a purpose statement helped him navigate the instructional design challenges and learning technologies needed to make this course a success. “I’m determined to create purpose-driven developmental learning opportunities that are uniquely adapted to people’s particular needs at this time, something meaningful, valuable and fun!”

This purpose statement was the start of what turned out to be a magnificent pool of resources and material for students to take on their guided self-directed learning journey during the virtual Wilderness Retreat.

With help from a team of instructional design specialists through the Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning and Haskayne School of Business, David created a model of synchronous and asynchronous learning, which he refined in real-time during and after each section. He also notes how dean Jim Dewald and Hal Kvisle helped provide inspiration to go the extra distance amidst shifting COVID-19 directives – all while learning new technologies and skills to achieve his learning goals.

Students underwent a guided experiential learning journey of personal leadership development via a week-long process: UnLearning with critical self-reflection, building resilience through adversity to develop core skills for leadership presence and finding purpose under challenging circumstances culminating in a land-based activity day supported by asynchronous activities for learning integration and small-group “Learning Clans.”

Phillip Du Plessix, an MBA student who participated in the virtual Wilderness Retreat tells us, “I had been very much looking forward to finishing my MBA program with the Wilderness Retreat - I saw it as an opportunity to reflect on everything I had learned in the program, to take inventory of what mattered to me, and to make a plan for what was next in my life. When I learned the retreat would have to be moved online and, though I understood and supported the need to do so, I was tremendously disappointed. However, to my great surprise, the virtual version of the wilderness retreat surpassed my expectations of even the in-person version. Dr. Lertzman managed to create a meaningful, immersive experience filled with deep and resounding life lessons in the midst of the pandemic and all of its limitations. I not only took away skills and practices that I will hold dearly for my entire life, but was also transformed in the way I see myself, the world, and the role I play in it. I now know what I have to offer others that is of greatest value: my presence. I recommend this course/experience, in whatever format you can get it, to all who are curious about their purpose.”

The Haskayne Leadership Expedition took place during the Fall 2020 block week in the Canadian Rockies. The goal? To help students cultivate practical and transferable leadership skills. The course included a range of problem-solving challenges, leadership assignments, structured personal reflection and small group work. Students were exposed to both the structured discipline and adaptive creativity required to achieve expedition goals.

Dr. Julian Norris, instructor of the Leadership Expedition tells us, “The Leadership Expedition emphasizes grit, tenacity, adaptability and compassionate resilience. To thrive as a university learning community as we head into the fall we will require all of those things. This generation of young people find themselves in a time of great uncertainty and growing complexity. They are aware that leaders around them are floundering and don’t have the answers. Anxiety about the future and excitement about what’s possible compete for our attention every day. The leadership expedition helps students cultivate not only the skills and knowledge needed to be leaders amidst such turbulent times but the deeper foundations - the mindsets, attitudes, embodied cognition and state of awareness required to meet these times well.”

When asked, what is the most important learning you hope students will take away from this course? Julian replies, “I hope that students develop greater confidence as young leaders. That they encounter an inner strength and depth of resourcefulness that they didn’t know they had.  I hope that they walk away with an awareness that ‘leadership’ is a way to describe the quality of our participation in this moment and that they don’t have to wait until they are appointed to a designated leadership role - they have a powerful influence on those around them and play a leadership role right now. During the expedition, students learn about leadership by actually leading and getting immediate feedback - from their peers, from professional guides and from the land they are travelling through. My hope is that this process becomes an ongoing conversation for them.”

Rachel Hughes, a third year BComm student who has engaged in a number of Haskayne Adventure Leadership offerings tells us, “As a student leader who values embracing opportunities for personal and professional growth, I was inspired to participate in the Haskayne Leadership Expedition due to my experience being involved with the Leadership Challenge Weekend this past year. Haskayne Adventure Leadership programs and courses provide a unique opportunity for students to develop the strong ethical leadership skills necessary to succeed in the current business ecosystem through hands-on experiential learning opportunities and guided reflection. Through my participation in both the Haskayne Leadership Expedition and the Leadership Challenge Weekend, I was able to enhance my self-awareness and develop my leadership capabilities while observing the leadership styles and behaviour of my peers and receiving feedback on my approach while leading a group in adverse conditions. This experience enabled me to learn valuable leadership lessons related to communication, decision making, problem solving, and group management.”

Read more about the Hal Kvisle Leadership Adventure Education Fund here.