ABSTRACT
Leadership development in the nonprofit sector is often viewed as a luxury, falling behind other organizational priorities such as service delivery and fundraising. Furthermore, traditional leadership models can be prescriptive and focused on specific organizational roles or positions rather than the unique strengths of the individual. The way that nonprofit leaders have historically been trained fails to recognize the myriad of ways in which people lead based on their authentic values and lived experiences. This chapter aims to reimagine how leadership is viewed and taught to meet current and future challenges that nonprofit and community leader’s face. Specifically, it offers an applied pedagogical framework to guide how nonprofit and community leaders are prepared for the increasingly complex work for which the sector is responsible. The framework is grounded in core beliefs that we each lead from our unique values and background and that leadership is a way of being, not simply a position or title. To demonstrate how leadership theories can be applied in the classroom and beyond, the chapter offers several teaching tools and examples that support self-reflection and raise self-awareness so that students may better understand their impact as leaders. By redefining how nonprofit leadership is viewed and taught, instructors can better prepare students to lead in authentic ways given their strengths and to address challenges facing the nonprofit sector that require more diverse and inclusive ways of leading.
