Week 3: Theories in Action at DIAL/Rowan

As I wrap up the third week of my internship with the Rowan Community Music School as well as the Diversity in Arts Leadership (DIAL) Program for Americans for the Arts (AFTA), I decided that the best topic to reflect upon at this point would be the theories I have seen in action in these workplaces. I have come to realize that the theory in action I see the most in my work is definitely relationship-oriented leadership. 

As part of the DIAL program, one of their main goals from the very beginning was to implement reflection sessions and mentor-mentee programs as a means of giving each intern adequate advice, care, and guidance. This internship would normally be in-person, but since it is now over Zoom, the supervisors made it that much more of a priority to meet with all of us interns and set community guidelines of respect for our virtual reflection and professional development sessions. Both our internship program supervisors, as well as the presenters at our professional development sessions, make a point to go over these standards of respect we all established at the beginning of the internship program in order to provide as safe and comfortable a conversational environment as possible before proceeding with the contents and discussions scheduled for our meetings. My DIAL mentor also makes a consistent effort to check in on how I am doing, and take important lessons from her experience to help me advocate for myself throughout my learning experiences.

At the Rowan Community Music School, my primary supervisor (Beth Guerriero, Director of Community Music School and Educational Partnerships) makes an effort to not only check in with me on the progress of my projects once a week with the main education staff team but also arranges another meeting for a 1-on-1 check-in about any questions or concerns I may have. Again, this internship would normally be in person, which means that, under normal circumstances, I would have a specific time in the day during which I would actually go to my internship site. However, because this internship is virtual, my work is 100% remote, which makes actual work times much more flexible and spontaneous than I have ever been used to. I remember initially feeling anxious about going to Beth for clarification on my work priorities and schedule, but Beth was completely supportive and willing to work with me to establish more concrete goals and a more structured schedule once she heard my concerns. At our very first check-in meeting, Beth did not ask me about my specific projects or logistical issues, but she asked what my career goals and aspirations were in order to gauge what would be the best learning experience opportunities for me during my time at this internship.

In my experience during this internship, both DIAL and Rowan have demonstrated a prioritization of empathy, respect, communication, and support, which is why I would say that they have demonstrated the relationship-oriented leadership theory.