This February through March, the Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education will be offering a new leadership program for students who identify as Black, Indigenous, people of colour (BIPOC) women at the University of Toronto. The seven-week program, called Learning to Lead, will teach leadership skills through philosophies of movement.
Facilitators of the program are racialized women, who have focused their professional careers on serving the BIPOC population.
“They are all well known in the Greater Toronto Area for their physical skill sets, ability to motivate others, gift for drawing from ancestral wisdom and BIPOC following,” says Janelle Joseph, an assistant professor at KPE, who came up with the idea for the program.
“I recognized very young that some of my only racialized teachers were sport coaches, dance instructors and martial arts masters,” says Joseph. “I learned so much from being taught by someone who looked like me.
“They taught me about physical activity, but the principles and philosophies of our physical activities were also foundational leadership and life lessons. I wanted to replicate that experience for women university students who are looking for that learning outside of their classrooms.”
Participants will meet weekly at the Goldring Centre fitness studio for 60-minute group sessions that will be split into two parts, one consisting of a movement experience - a dance, a strengthening exercise or a sport-related activity - and the other focusing on discussions about the unique experiences of racialized women and strategies for empowerment and leadership.
“Confidence comes with practice,” says Joseph, who is also the founder of KPE’s Indigeneity, Diaspora, Equity and Anti-Racism in Sport (IDEAS) research lab. “The more you engage with an activity and really try to push yourself the more you can do. Sometimes you might not believe you are capable, but when an instructor or a peer or the mirror reflects back to you how excellent you are, you feel more able to take on new challenges.”
Joseph explains that in sport or fitness we can focus on just having fun, which takes the pressure off, relaxes our muscles and our minds, allowing for more embodied risk taking.
“This is exactly what is needed in other leadership contexts: staying relaxed and taking risks are keys to success,” she says. “My research shows that making the connection between body confidence and social-emotional confidence explicit through instruction and discussion helps to create long-lasting change.”