By Emma Godwin, Golden LEAF External Affairs Intern
In December, Golden LEAF Program Officer and A/V Tech Coordinator, Brynn Fann graduated from the Rural Economic Development Institute, REDI. REDI is the NC Rural Center’s flagship leadership development program. This three-month leadership training prepares existing and emerging leaders with tools needed to approach economic and community development issues amongst rural North Carolina.
“I applied for REDI to obtain a certification and increase my knowledge on management practices found within rural initiatives,” said Fann. “After joining the program, I realized REDI offered so much more.”
The program is divided into three sections, which Fann called “buckets.” One section was data background. The second section is telling your story and understanding different backgrounds. The third section was leadership skills and development.
Fann explained that the data background sections focused on the economies of rural North Carolina and where to obtain this information. This was a section he was most familiar with because he uses databases often with his current job functions and was able to build onto his knowledge base.
The sections of telling your own story and listening to everyone else’s, Fann found most important to him. This section allowed him to understand more about people having different perspectives.
“By the time the program concluded, I realized the way I tackle ideas and what other avenues I could practice to approaching challenges and opportunities with a different perspective,” said Fann. “The program helped me realize more about myself.”
The last bucket of leadership skills and development addressed conflict resolution, emotional intelligence, leading change initiatives, courageous conversations, collaborative leadership, and leading for innovation. Two of the topics that impacted Fann the most were the conflict resolution and the emotional intelligence.
“The leadership skills and development section had the most training session, but it was necessary as it was the most needed session,” said Fann. “Everybody walked away with different buckets of the session which they felt benefited them best”.
Fann expressed what he gained the most out of the program was recognizing and learning how he handles leadership challenges and opportunities.
“They encouraged us throughout the program not to be scared to speak up if you have an idea or thought,” said Fann. “I believe that tapping into my strengths and knowing how I operate to make myself fit into the situation will help make me more effective at my job.”
The program is structured so that participants are encouraged to sit with new people at each session to expand your network.
“What I loved about the program was that it was very personal to your interpersonal growth needs and provided a strong networking environment, where everyone gets to know everyone else in the program,” said Fann. “Even though the program may seem intimidating, it was essential to hold the sessions this way. By the second week, everyone is more comfortable and begins to learn from each other. I highly recommend REDI.”
Click here to learn more about REDI.