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Steven Leone
SOLC Co-Facilitation Experience
11/12/15
University of Rhode Island

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Student Organization Leadership Consultants
Colleges Against Cancer Retreat
10-29-15
Group: Colleges Against Cancer
Group Contact & info: Rebecca Tourtellotte rtourtellotte@my.uri.edu
SOLC Contact: Connor Curtis
Goal of Retreat:
# Participants:
30
Date: October 29, 2015
Time: 6 pm 9pm
Location: Union
Facilitators: Steven Leone, Elana
Shadows: Robin, Yami, Jamie
Advisor: Jessi
Food Requests:
Special Requests/Needs:
Retreat Agenda:
Time/
Location
6:00 6:10

Topic/Activity

Facilitator

Notes/Supplies needed

Group Contract
Where the Wind Blows

Steven
Elana

Waivers, Pens, Preprogram

Evals
Paper, markers, tape
Cones

6:10-6:30
6:30-6:45
6:45-7:00

Captains Coming

Yami

7:10-7:55

Stepping Stones

Connor

Stepping Stones

8:00-8:30

Tweener

Steven

Ball

8:30-9:00

Closing - Web

Elana

Yarn

Waivers/Introductions

Handouts:
Waivers
Evaluation
General Supplies Check list:
Tubes
Poster
Markers
Pens
Balls
Rubber Chicken
Buckets
Cones

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Everyone can relate to the devastating effects of cancer. We all have someone,
know someone, or know of someone whos been negatively affected by it. I commend
Colleges Against Cancer in their unrelenting mission to raise cancer awareness and plan
URIs annual Relay for Life. Co-Facilitating this retreat was one of the best experiences
Ive had in SOLC. I worked in a group consisting of Connor (Lead), Elana (CoFacilitator), Jamie (Shadow), Robyn (Shadow), Yami (Shadow), and me (Co-Facilitator).
I acknowledged the mission of Colleges Against Cancer and applauded them
immediately when we started the retreat; this set the tone for following positive
reinforcement. Their goals were to integrate the new members into the group by having
them become closer to the returning members. They wanted to work on team bonding to
work toward their common goal (Relay for Life) and to create lasting friendships. I used
my strengths in a way that complemented my leading style and I learned valuable lessons
from this retreat that I can apply to future endeavors.
The retreat was a success. Elana and I have very good chemistry and this enabled
use to use each other as springboards for our activities and our ideas. Also, Connor
assisted us whenever we got off-track. She did a great job calming us all down before the
retreat and in turn making a comfortable working environment. In fact, we all had a minidance party in the SOLC room after our meeting on the night before the retreat. We all
gelled, and this enabled us to create uplifting environment among ourselves and at the
retreat. As for the participants, they were eager to partake in all the activities. Having a
high-functioning group made things much easier for all of us. One thing I really enjoyed
was Connors constant guiding presence. I think she wanted Elana and me to have

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sizeable roles because it was our first facilitations. She never really interfered with either
of our activities or debriefings. Contrastingly, she actually gave me some advice after I
ran the Mission Statement. I mistakenly relied heavily on my own input rather than
letting them come to realizations on their own. After Connor alerted me of this, I talked
less during and after Tweener and it yielded a greater experience. Connor complimented
me on my ability to take constructive criticism and actually implement it. Trust and
friendship were also great things achieved in this retreat. I went around during the
Mission Statement and talked to every single member and tried to get to know him or her
on a personal level. I think this also set the tone for a friendly and open retreat.
If I could change anything, Id prefer an earlier meeting time with my group. It
wasnt haphazard per se, but I definitely felt a little rushed in coming up with an activity
and feeling prepared enough to present it. This wasnt necessarily Connors fault; we just
didnt make the initiative to meet up. Also, while its never ideal to switch locations in the
middle of a retreat, I think our entire group handled it remarkably. All of the shadows
were more than willing to help out with anything that needed to be moved and anything
during the actual retreat. Everything else ran rather smoothly.
My five top strengths are WOO, Positivity, Ideation, Input, and Communication.
WOO attributed to much of my success as a first time facilitator. Making an immediate
connection to the people I would end up leading in activity and debrief was essential. My
key was connecting to every one of them in a very personal way, and this was achieved.
Moreover, the retreat reviews reflected this. Communication similarly allowed me to
express all of my ideas during the retreat. We all had an open line of communication and
there werent any ambiguities among Colleges Against Cancer or my team. Input was

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also a crucial strength for me. Drawing productive connections from events is a skill
necessary in a facilitator or leader in general. Making sense of things is required for
growth. I like to think outside the box. When I was in charge of debriefing Connors
Human Pretzel, I didnt have a game plan in mind; I just watched silently and tried to
come up with a profound meaning for her choice of this activity. I asked all the needed
questions like, How did you feel during this? What did you learn from this? How can
you connect this to your group? But at the end, I asked them if they could all go around
and say the thing that makes them the happiest. Although the most unorthodox question,
it was also the most productive. Ive come to understand that peoples eyes light up when
they talk about something they enjoy. People find solace in passion. People find relation
to others in shared interests. There was always a common interest among the group and
all of the members realized that theyre not so different after all. Just like the human
pretzel, theyre intricately connected to each other physically and mentally.
While looking through leadership theories discussed in class, the Wilson Model
stood out to me. Knowing yourself is the first step (Wilson Model). Ive analyzed and
reanalyzed my strengths many times in order to do it. As aforementioned, WOO,
Ideation, and Communication were strengths all utilized on this retreat. I wouldnt have
used these to my advantage if I werent sure of them in my own mind. Leading yourself
is the next step. Developing personal connections are an essential part of this. I found it
vastly beneficial to be friends with all my partners on the facilitation team. Also, it was
productive to befriend everyone on the retreat. The third and fourth steps involve
broadening perspectives and developing and redefining skills. Broadening perspectives is
necessary while leading a group of diverse individuals. I had to take into account that

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everyone is different and has different preferences. I avoided any exclusive pronouns and
any speech that could make someone feel excluded. Moreover, I taught using everything
Ive learned and that I now know. The Wilson Model is highly relatable in a retreat
setting.
During this retreat, I learned how to lead an activity, and how to coordinate a
Mission Statement. I learned that making personal connections goes a long way. I also
ascertained that my leading group consisted of hard working, motivated, and fun people.
We all worked well together and I think we all brought something uniquely dynamic to
the table. Connor was an incredible lead. For further retreats, Im definitely going to
continue utilizing conversation as a debrief method. While props are very useful, I value
the naturalness of genuine dialogue. I want to continue facilitating retreats and continue
growing as a leader.

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Works Cited

Wilson Model. Retrieved November 14, 2015, from

http://www.mu.uri.edu/leadership/pdfs/Wilson Model.pdf