Introducing the New Leader Recommendation Form
Leslie Del
Gigante and Trudy Hartt
Leader Accreditation Department Co Directors
From: LEAVEN, Vol. 35 No. 6, December 1999-January 2000, p. 139
If you've ordered a new LLLI
Application Packet recently, you've seen that the Leader Recommendation
Form looks different. It's four pages long. Why?
You Know the Applicant
Leaders are the interested
mother's first contact with La Leche League. You make La Leche League
"real" and provide an example, not only of La Leche League
philosophy, but also of LLL leadership. A mother can learn a lot about
what LLL leadership entails by observing as you facilitate meeting discussions,
answer questions, and involve others in Group management. In discussions
prior to and during an application, you are the Applicant's first resource.
As you observe her contributions
to discussions and her interaction with other mothers, you learn first
hand what a mother might bring to LLL leadership. As she attends Series
Meetings month after month, you watch her develop and communicate her
understanding of mothering through breastfeeding. As you discuss mothering
and breastfeeding, you begin to see how this mother's choices fit in
with LLLI philosophy. Using No 120-11, "Leader's Guide: In Preparation
for an Application" as a guide, you discuss an LLL Leader's role
and responsibilities. These discussions help you "round out,"
confirm, modify, and/or expand on your observations.
The Leader Recommendation
Form is your tool for transmitting what you know to the Leader Accreditation
Department (LAD). Based on what you and the interested mother have observed
and discussed, you will plan some of the areas you will focus on and
activities and exercises you will do during the application. Based on
what you write, the LAD representative will help tailor the application
to the needs of the Applicant. Together, you and the LAD representative
will help the applicant build on her strengths and offer her opportunities
to increase her knowledge and skills.
The New Form
The Leader Recommendation
Form has been revised to make it a more effective tool. As before, you
can answer directly on the form or use a separate piece of paper; should
you choose to answer on the form, you'll have ample room for your responses.
There are places to check off what you have discussed, a few spaces
for quick yes/no answers, and lots of writing space for your thoughtful
comments. For your convenience, the 1998 "LLLI Prerequisites to
Applying for Leadership" are printed in their entirety on the first
page of the new form.
A new question asks whether
you used the "Guidelines for Leaders" as you considered whether
the candidate meets the prerequisites, and if you consulted a LAD representative
with any questions you may have had. If you are uncertain about whether
a mother's understanding and experience fulfills the prerequisites,
it is important that you consult with a LAD representative before you
write a recommendation. She can help you sort through your concerns,
focus on what's relevant, and work effectively with the accreditation
policy.
Another new part of the form
provides a place to gather observations from other Leaders. They may
prefer to complete separate forms or include their input with yours,
on the same form. Every Leader in the Group can have an effect on an
application - through her example, the interests she demonstrates, her
concerns, and her support. From her perspective, based on her observations
and her experience, each Leader can add to the design of an application.
A New Beginning
The Leader Recommendation
Form is the candidate's letter of introduction to what may be her first
contact with the larger world of La Leche League.
She has worked with you in
a Leader-interested mother partnership from the first telephone helping
call or Series Meeting you shared. When you take the time to complete
the Leader Recommendation Form thoroughly and thoughtfully, you expand
the partnership to the triad of Leader-Applicant-LAD representative.
Just as we help each mother
individually, building on what she already knows and providing her resources
to answer her particular questions, Leader preparation builds on what
each interested mother knows and provides resources to help answer her
questions and achieve her LLL goals. The information and insights you
provide via the Leader Recommendation Form are a foundation on which
- together - you and the LAD can build the preparation of a future co-Leader.
Page last edited Sun Oct 14 09:31:33 UTC 2007.
