The Challenge Program

Founded by Juan-Pierre van der Walt

Background
In the world of hashtags, fallests and vocal social inequalities, student leadership has experienced a renaissance from an age of management (a guided tour of actions driven by tradition, established ideas and concrete methods) to an age of exploration (facilitated leadership driven by values and consideration in the pursuit of diverse understanding and acceptance). It is within this new epoch that the lacuna has appeared between individuals of different backgrounds and understanding. Student leaders are faced with intersectionality and are left answering the questions that were largely ignored by previous generations. Our young leaders are faced with the canyons of, among others, Fees must Fall, a Decolonised South Africa, Racism, Sexism, Homophobia, Rape Culture, privilege, lack of accessibility and many other societal challenges which can only be bridged by understanding, appreciation and the collaborative effort of crucial conversations. It is with these uncomfortable conversations (which are so crucial in developing a way of overcoming these challenges) that the true stumbling blocks arise.

Young minds are rarely provided with the tools to engage in these crucial conversations within a safe environment, where they are allowed the opportunity to develop the questions that are required to navigate the labyrinth post student leadership. These young minds are regularly left to learn how to bridge the void through radical and very challenging situations. An occurrence from which a tendency towards apathy or untransformed radicalism stems as research has proven.

A need therefore exists for a platform that will enlighten leaders to the necessity of engaging these crucial topics, while providing them with a safe space to develop an understanding of the tools that are vital for these engagements.

Program outcome
The Challenge program is a senior leadership advancement initiative. It follows a multiple faceted approached based in developing senior student leaders, at the conclusion of their leadership terms and allowing these student leaders to assist practically in developing prospective student leaders by providing them with a platform to explore relevant questions and societal challenges in a safe environment.
The program aims at developing leadership aspects in senior leaders that will improve employability and sustainable, long-term responsible leadership as well as initiating the realisation in prospective leaders that there are elements in leadership that will be uncomfortable yet vital to engage on. The program will provide the tools that these leaders need to equip themselves for meaningful engagement as well as the realisation of the necessity to learn, develop and enrich their leadership skills with the eventual aim of giving back to prospective student leaders when they reach the stage of senior leadership.

Content
The program focuses on developing leaders in understanding the intersectionality of social justice, leadership and the concept of self. Leaders are instructed on an academic platform to broaden their theoretical understanding of the subject matter while being provided with the ability to apply said concepts in practise. Assessment is based in teaching leaders how to delineate, expand and better understand the imparted topics while developing further skills that will be valuable in their employability and leadership profiles.

The content of the program is based in establishing and understanding personal identity and how this identity is performed through the projected persona of leadership. Careful attention is paid in linking the authentic self to the professional self.
Social Justice challenges the preconceived ideas forming the status quo of leaders. Leaders are trained to academically evaluate social justice issues, with predominant focus on the underlying effect in order to sensitively, effectively and proactively allow leaders to manage social justice issues. The intersectionality of social justice issues with influential factors in everyday leadership is included in the study of leadership in Social Justice.

The problematized leadership considerations are brought in to consideration by looking in to the complexities of leadership and how these complexities manifest in general and senior leadership. The application of leadership skills focused on structured and unstructured leadership positions are considered. Practical application of problematized leadership constructs are introduced and leaders are encouraged to lead leaders.

The content focuses on 4 sections:

Section 1 – Identity (Module 1)
Section 2 – Social Justice (Modules 2-6)
Section 3 – Employability (Module 7)
Section 4 – Leadership (Module 8-10)

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Assessment
The progress and understanding of the leaders in this program is assessed using various methods aimed at critical engagement with very academic topics in an interesting way. The varied assessments allow leaders to develop essential skills needed in the workplace while allowing them to create a better understanding of their strengths and how these strengths can be applied in a modern academic context. Close attention is paid to creating a strong body of evidence that leaders in the program can use to substantiate their employability while also creating better access to very difficult topics.