ELI Pre-Institute Assessment

This assessment will be given before and after the institute as a personal, confidential
measure of effectiveness.

Participant Name __Shari Carpenter_______________Date _June 27, 2007________

1. Does the concept of leadership appeal to you? in what way?

Yes…although a somewhat scary thought. It’s probably the “unknown territory”

that makes it scary.

2. Have you participated in leadership training? If so, what kind?

No.

3. Have you considered pursuing leadership opportunities at Rend Lake College and
how so?

Not really. At this point, I don’t feel that I’m quite ready for that. I am excited
about giving it some thought though!

4. What do you see as the differences between management and leadership?

To me, management is more about the ability to manage things; a budget,

equipment, parts, etc. Leadership is leading people--possessing the skills and
desire to relate to others, encouraging others to do their best, and challenging
them to reach their goals. A leader should be willing to work alongside others;
however, their values and qualities may set them above. I believe that successful
leaders lead by example.

Col. Danny R. McKnight (retired U.S. Army), motivational speaker and author,
points out the seven key values of leadership. “…the greatness quality of
successful leaders can best be described by seven key values—loyalty, duty,
respect, selfless-service, honor, integrity, personal courage. The
interrelationship of these values is the essence of successful leadership.” The
following acronym is used in his seminars: LDRSHIP - loyalty, duty, respect,
selfless-service, honor, integrity, personal courage.

In considering his belief of these seven key values, I agree that if someone
possesses these characteristics, they have the potential to become a great leader.
5. Have you read any books on leadership? if so, which ones?

I think that attitudes play an important role in leadership. The following books
may not address “leadership” directly; however, I feel they discuss important
characteristics and examples which pertain to leadership.

• Attitude is Everything by Keith Harrell

• Fish! by Stephen C. Lundin, Ph.D., Harry Paul, and John Christensen
• Fish! Tales by Stephen C. Lundin, Ph.D., John Christensen, Harry Paul, with
Philip Strand
• Life is Short…So, Lighten Up! by Sam Glenn
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
• Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson, M.D.

6. What traits of a leader do you feel that you possess?

• Good attitude
• Desire to see and/or help others obtain success. These successes may include
their personal success over personal struggles or even a student’s success in
a class.
• Loyalty
• Respect- for others as well as myself
• Integrity

7. What traits of a leader do you feel that you could improve upon?

All of the above.

8. What do you see as the advantages of being a leader?

Having the opportunity to lead others whether that is a person, a class, or an

entire department, in an effort to achieve our goals and sharing the
responsibilities of reaching these goals.

9. What do you see as the disadvantages of being a leader?

The failures that very likely will occur and the responsibilities that a leader has
for others and for themselves.

10. From 1 to 10, I would rate my leadership potential as a ___5___.

(Have a lot to learn.)
11. From 1 to 10, I would rate my desire to be a leader as a __9____.
(Possessing the qualities and having the desire to be leader, a 10; however, there
is a scare factor.)

12. From 1 to 10, my supervisor would rate my leadership potential as a __7____.

(Haven’t spoken to him about this, so I’m guessing! I may be way off!)

13. My hopes for this Leadership Institute are…

I am looking for the Institute to be a positive experience--one that will teach me

the qualities of a real leader, a successful leader. In turn, this will encourage and
challenge me to be the best at whatever I am doing whether that is in the
classroom, in the workplace, at home, or in my community.

14. My other thoughts regarding leadership...

Wow, this assessment made my think! It really made me assess my leadership

skills and qualities and how they relate to my current position…and, of course,
where there is room for improvement!

In order for me to be successful as a leader in the classroom, I must engage

students and lead them; encourage them to be the best they can be. In some cases,
that is a tall order, but I must step up. When I once accepted a job, I made the
statement that I would try to do the best that I could. The response was, “There is
no try. You have to step up and do it.” At the time, that response set me back a
little, but it quickly turned into a challenge. Although I feel that the response did
not mean that I could not try things and fail (because we must try things to
progress and learn), but that I cannot just try to do my best, but I have to do my
best; that I must step up and continue to improve myself and my teaching
techniques.

I am still working with that challenge.