Judith Rowe

An experienced coach, trainer and facilitator, Judy Rowe is the principal of Judith A. Rowe Consulting, LLC.  She enjoys helping people and organizations to discover their strengths, define a vision and create a pathway toward that vision for success. Making an impact in the areas of social justice, equity, diversity and inclusion whenever and wherever she can is also part of Judy’s mission.

Judith has a career spanning more than 30 years with experience working with fortune 500 companies, small businesses, nonprofit and government organizations. During her 27-year career with Corning Incorporated she held a wide range of roles including product engineer, sales engineer, customer service supervisor, human resources, quality training coordinator and Performance Excellence facilitator. Judy earned dual undergraduate bachelor’s degrees in Civil and Industrial Engineering from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga, and a master’s degree from Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations. She is also certified as a Six-Sigma Green Belt, as well as StandOut^TM and People Skills^TM trainer.

Marcus Brooks

Marcus hails from New York City where he uniquely combines his formal business skill sets in leadership, organizational development, and entrepreneurship with his deep passion for human development and experiential learning.  Marcus has held finance positions in insurance, debt and equity real estate finance, as well as investment banking.  His career has also expanded into management roles in the outdoor industry where he has been an accomplished outdoor adventure guide, leading expeditions to the Canadian Rockies (9,000+ ft.), Peruvian Andes (15,000+ ft.) and Kilimanjaro (19,341 ft.). 

Currently, Marcus is a Senior Facilitator with Cornell’s Team & Leadership Center, Senior Management Consultant with Cornell’s Department of Organizational Development & Effectiveness and the Head Nerd in Charge of Let’s Brainstorm, LLC, a strategy, leadership & finance consulting firm.  His speeches and workshop topics of expertise include, crisis management, introductory to advanced negotiations, diversity (in the outdoor industry), sexual violence prevention, & emotional intelligence, to name a few.

Dr. Theoria Cason

As an educator, entrepreneur, and corporate DEI professional her commitment to lead with integrity serves as a barometer to facilitate culture change. Empowered by the resilience of her maternal elders, she identifies as an unapologetically Black woman, with an earnest desire to advocate for people who are often overlooked and underrated. As a global citizen, she makes it a point to visit at least one new country each year, to broaden her understanding of the human experience and the innumerable ways we make meaning with our piece of the world.

Dr. Cason is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of her consulting firm, Theoria In Praxis. She is a Cornell Certified Diversity Professional; and she holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, a master’s degree in College Student Personnel from Western Illinois University, and a Doctor of Education in Administration and Policy Studies from the University of Pittsburgh. 

What is Emotional Intelligence?

February 14, 2023

4:15-5:30 pm ET 

Summary

Emotional intelligence (often referred to as EQ) is defined as “a set of emotional and social skills that influence the way we perceive and express ourselves, develop and maintain social relationships, cope with challenges, and use emotional information in an effective and meaningful way” (Bar-On, 2006). Emotional intelligence as defined here and applied in the Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i 2.0) reflects one’s overall well-being and ability to succeed in life. This workshop will focus on understanding the 15 key emotional intelligent practices as well as clustering these 15 practices into five major behavioral composites: Self-Perception, Self-Expression, Interpersonal, Decision Making, and Stress Management.  As a leader, your ability to understand your emotions, as well as the emotions of your team, will be instrumental to your success. 

Inclusion and Belonging – We All Want It, How Do We Get It?

February 22, 2023

4-5:30 pm ET

Register for Inclusion and Belonging workshop

Summary

Identity is inextricably linked to power and privilege. Being aware of the power and privilege (or lack thereof) that comes with multiple identities is an important foundation for cultivating self-awareness as a leader. In this session you will learn about: the characteristics of oppression that are systemic within the academy and workplace culture, ways to recognize and respond to imposter syndrome, self-advocacy as a form of self-care, and how to create an environment in which all individuals feel empowered to express their opinions in order to sustain a culture of belonging.  

Inclusive Leadership Frameworks

March 9, 2023

4-5:30 pm ET

Register for Inclusive Leadership workshop

Summary

While many leadership models exist to provide a framework for what truly effective leadership looks like, this module will identify a few that are indicative of successful, inclusive leadership – encompassing all the ways that we can be prepared to lead a multi-faceted, diverse team. We will take a look at these models, styles, and traits – examining what resonates with each participant and how they can be used for their own inclusive leadership growth. 

Conflict Management 

4-5:30 pm ET Workshop

Summary

Our approach to conflict resolution will be based on the Thomas –Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI).  The TKI approach allows you to discover whether you might be overusing or underusing one or more of five conflict-handling modes (collaborating, competing, compromising, accommodating, and avoiding), so you can improve how you manage conflict in the future.  Because no two individuals have exactly the same needs and concerns, conflict is a natural part of our interactions with others—whether in our personal life or in our organizational life.  Conflict resolution skills for leaders is of paramount importance.  A lot of what leaders do is “putting out fires.”  Many of these “fires” are between humans whether they are a part of our organization, a customer, or a vendor. 

Culture – Power, Awareness, and Humility

4-5:30 pm ET Workshop

Summary

Cultural intelligence describes one’s ability to understand, relate to and work effectively across various cultures and identities. During this module, participants will use these concepts to evaluate their own abilities to be curious about, value and include others’ perspectives. They will leave with strategies that will set them up for ongoing growth in the areas of self-awareness, humility and learning to create an inclusive environment for everyone. 

Leadership Visioning 

4-5:30 pm ET Workshop

Summary

The characteristics of leadership are not exclusive to the most senior ranking persons within an organization; they are characteristics that any person can embody. Establishing a sentiment of safety, requires authenticity and vulnerability. This can be achieved by stepping outside of oneself to learn about the lived experiences of others. Through reflective dialogue, this session will provide you with strategies you can employ in the future in order to strategically navigate organizational culture as part of your leadership practice. Additionally, you will develop an action plan for continued learning in aspects of inclusive leadership. 

Summary

Life’s like a jungle sometimes – you regularly navigate through injustices, papers, projects, exams, COVID, relationships.  How can you keep from going under?  Join us for this highly interactive and timely real talk session with Dr. Theoria Cason, Marcus Brooks, and Judith Rowe as we discuss and share insights on the importance of mental health and wellbeing – sharing tips on self-care, setting boundaries, the importance of control/influence and letting go. We are looking forward to hearing your voice!