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Holy Angels Catholic Church |
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Appreciative
Inquiry "Celebrating
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| Holy Angels is privileged to have been chosen by the National Black Catholic Congress (NBCC) as one of four churches nationally to participate in a grant from the Lilly Foundation to learn and use Appreciative Inquiry. This widely-used model for organizational change focuses on leveraging existing strengths to envision and implement an ideal future, rather than emphasizing "problem solving". Nearly 100 parishioners accepted the invitation to participate in the two-half-day intensive curriculum. Our facilitator was Christopher Ann Robinson-Easley, Ph.D., Professor of Management, Governors State University. Dr. Easley, educator, author, and international presenter, incorporated two excellent videos on paradigm shift and leadership strategies by futurist Joel Barker to start off the program on Friday evening, followed by a brainstorming session on past successes. Saturday's session included reporting out on small group sessions, with follow up work on strategies for future development, and an overview of the Appreciative Inquiry process. Both our Strategic Planning Committee and the parish as a whole will be engaging in follow up activities to incorporate and institutionalize Appreciative Inquiry as part of ongoing parish vision and implementation activities. This session and the tools and techniques it taught promise life-changing possibilities for parish and parishioners alike. |
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