Tips for Leadership Transitions

Tips for Leadership Transitions

Leadership transitions are important to your group’s longevity and mission. Because transitioning leadership can be a little tricky, Dwight Hall provides this quick guide to leadership transitions in general but also in regards to your responsibilities as a Dwight Hall Member Group.

After your new leadership has been elected/selected/etc., think about these suggestions to ensure a smooth leadership transition:

• Meet as a leadership team

Meeting with your current and new leadership will ensure that those in similar roles can communicate expectations and resources to each other. Use this as a space to share goals for the new leadership, plan events, and transition important accounts such as email and YaleConnect.

• Have a contact person

It may be hard for your new leadership team to retain everything being thrown at them in a new leadership meeting. Additionally, you might not cover all they need to know in one meeting. To remedy this, if you feel comfortable, give the contact information of an old leadership team member to the new leadership team in case they have questions later in their term.

• Try an alternating leadership structure

Whether you have presidents, coordinators, or a leadership board, try staggering those coming into new leadership positions each year. For example, have two coordinators, one whose term begins and ends earlier than the other.

• Consolidate group information into one place

When you take on a leadership role, it can be easy to mix your personal files with organizational files and storage. This even pertains to information you haven’t written down. Before transitioning leadership, consolidate all of this information into one place, such as a Google Drive. Take time to finish up ongoing tasks and write down your thoughts and goals for future leadership, including any important contacts.

• Transition leadership at the beginning of the calendar year instead of the school year

This can help with the leadership transition and ongoing mentorship of the new leadership team.

A description of Dwight Hall for incoming leadership

In addition to the leadership transition within your group, Dwight Hall Member Groups must also maintain their dedication to Dwight Hall responsibilities. So it is important to make sure that income leadership knows what these responsibilities are.

Dwight Hall serves as the Center for Public Service and Social Justice on Yale’s campus. We have a variety of programs that are available to students, including fellowships, community service support, and education programs. One of the many things Dwight Hall does is support student groups that align with our mission “To nurture and inspire students as leaders of social change and to advance justice and service in New Haven and around the world.” The group you lead is a Member Group of Dwight Hall, meaning that at some point the past leadership of your group petitioned for membership at Dwight Hall in order to gain access to a plethora of resources including funding, space, car, and equipment rentals, and professional staff support. 

In order to best continue our support of your member group, there are a few requirements you must meet each semester.

1.  The Record is a document that will be sent to your personal email at the beginning of each semester. This form asks you to name the leadership of your group, your goals for the semester, and any ways in which Dwight Hall can help you achieve those goals. The information you provide is used by the membership team on the Student Executive Committee to best cater events during the semester and support you on an individual basis. 
2. At the beginning of the semester you will also receive a Campus and Community (C&C) Application, which is Dwight Hall’s funding application. You must complete the Record in order to be considered for funding of up to $1,500 a semester. For more information on the C&C application, please visit our Funding page. 
3. At the end of the semester you must complete the Review, which is a document similar to the Record that outlines how the semester went for your group and how you plan to proceed. This document is particularly important because it updates leadership information for the coming semester. 
4. In addition to this administrative work, Dwight Hall also requires that you send one representative from your group to the Cabinet meeting at the end of each semester. At this meeting you will vote for new leadership of Dwight Hall, approve member groups petitioning for Dwight Hall membership, and collaborate with other groups similar to yours. 

By completing all of these requirements and passing on your knowledge of Dwight Hall to future club leadership, you ensure that Dwight Hall’s resources are accessible to your group for years to come. If you have any questions about Dwight Hall Membership, please visit our Managing Your Member Group page or email membership@dwighthall.org.