The PHEARLESS Initiative

Center for Leadership in Public Health Practice

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The PHEARLESS Initiative

Advancing the Public’s Health by Developing the Leadership Competencies Necessary to Design Systems that Promote Thriving for All

The last few years have provided both a challenge and an opportunity for anyone working to protect the public’s health. PHEARLESS, which stands for the Public Health Regenerative Leadership Synergy, emerged from a collaborative process that assessed the leadership lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic while seeking answers to the question of how we intentionally design communities where all can thrive. PHEARLESS promotes the support and development of leaders who can work together to answer that question and do so in the complex world in which we find ourselves. Read on to learn more about who we are and the details behind the PHEARLESS initiative.

The PHEARLESS community collectives completed the curriculum in March 2024 and continue to lead collaborative efforts in their communities through the lens of regenerative leadership. In the spirit of regenerative leadership, the PHEARLESS leaders will harness an appreciative mindset and new skills to connect complex systems through strategies that promote the conditions for all to thrive. The Center of Leadership in Public Health Practice continues to support the communities and is committed to applying evaluation findings to new and existing public health and community leadership initiatives. The PHEARLESS initiative will formally conclude at the end of August 2024.

Who Are We?

This initiative was funded by the Kresge Foundation, the de Beaumont Foundation, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO), the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO), and the Big Cities Health Coalition (BCHC) worked in partnership with the University of South Florida (USF) College of Public Health (COPH) and USF Muma College of Business. The USF COPH Center for Leadership in Public Health Practice was the National Program Office (NPO) for this initiative.

Purpose & Vision

The purpose of PHEARLESS is to facilitate the emergence and sustainability of leaders who serve the well-being of all. PHEARELSS was developed with the vision of “learning communities that create and sustain the conditions for all to thrive.”

By the end of the PHEARLESS experience learners will:
- Transform their leadership approach to a more holistic and collaborative style.
- Encourage the adoption of life- affirming practices and approaches to decision-making.
- Develop the mindset and skillset to transform systems, structures, and policies, in partnership with community, toward a just and equitable future.
- Create opportunities for networking and collaboration that develops a community of regenerative leaders.
- Develop leaders who can harness the power of strategic communication and messaging
- Support the development of skills such as facilitation, conflict resolution, and strategic planning
- Build the mindset and competencies that foster continued growth of future regenerative leaders
- Facilitate learning and growth through a mix of theoretical and practical learning experiences
- Foster the development of effective regenerative leadership qualities
Those who participated in PHEARLESS continue to learn from one another, connect to many resources and develop the regenerative leadership mindset and skillset needed in our current times. PHEARLESS focuses specifically on the development of the mindset and skillset necessary to build robust community networks and redesign community systems that better promote the opportunity for all to thrive. We seek to co-create, with our participants, a regenerative approach in which we mutually learn how to apply these principles to the work of improving the public’s health in communities.

The PHEARLESS initiative integrates regenerative leadership education with innovative collaboration tools to enhance skill development through experiential learning. Such education and skill building are critical to support the collaborative learning and co-creation necessary to tackle the complex issues facing public health leaders and their community partners today.

Program Elements

There were three competency-developing modules over the year and a culminating activity. Two of the three modules were held virtually and required the community collectives to meet together in their local community. The in-person module will required travel in November 2023 as noted below.

All participants were provided access to an online learning platform and were asked to participate on the platform before and after each module. Therefore, each participant needed access to a laptop computer with internet access. We provided limited funds to support community leader applicants who require assistance with these resources.

Title	Content	Dates	Location
Module 1	Leading With Your Whole Self	September 19-22, 2023	Virtual, Community Collectives to convene locally
Module 2	Leading with Others	November 7-9, 2023	In-person, location TBD
Module 3	Leading with Complexity	January 23-26, 2024	Virtual, Community Collectives to convene locally
Module 4	Leading with Complexity	March 19-22, 2024	Virtual, Community Collectives to convene locally
Culminating Activity	Defined by each Community Collective; presentations to the entire cohort	May 2024 - TBD	Location TBD
Alumni Network	Regenerative Community Collaboration Hub	Ongoing

Eligibility Requirements

General and Specific Participant Criteria

Timeline

June 6, 2023 - Launch call for applications
July 14, 2023 at 3:00 p.m. EST - Applications due
An application completeness review will begin on a rolling basis as applications are received.
August 11, 2023 – Applicants will be notified of their application status.
September 19-22, 2023 – First live virtual module begins. Times TBD.
Note that pre-work will be required prior to the September live virtual session.
November 7-9, 2023 – in person module will convene

What is regenerative leadership?

This one-year, experiential learning opportunity introduced participants to a leadership approach that better helps address the complex issues of our times. The approach is a positive, strengths-based, adaptive, systems-thinking, leadership approach termed “regenerative” leadership. Laura Storm and Giles Hutchins introduced many of these concepts of leadership focused on creating positive change and restoring balance in complex living systems. Regenerative leadership, which arises from an understanding of the conditions in which life regenerates, prioritizes empathy, collaboration (and collaborative learning) and systems thinking over traditional controlling models of leadership. By creating positive relationships and nurturing connectivity within a system, regenerative leaders aim to sow the seeds for outcomes that benefit everyone involved.

With whom are we seeking to partner?

PHEARLESS supported partnerships of local, state, regional, tribal or territorial health jurisdictions with experience working together in community to advance health and wellbeing for all. Fifteen community partners were selected to experience this one-year program. We define each partnership as a “Community Collective” comprising two governmental public health leaders and two community leaders from the same jurisdiction. These leaders are individuals who are 1) in a position where they would benefit from additional leadership competency development and 2) support collaborative leadership efforts to improve health and well-being for all.

What type of community is eligible?

All types of jurisdictions including rural, suburban, urban, regional, state, tribal or territorial as long as there is a defined public health authority for the jurisdiction.

Which community leaders are eligible?

Community leaders are eligible as a representative of a defined jurisdiction, as defined above, in partnership with the public health leaders within the same jurisdiction.

Which public health leaders are eligible?

Public health leaders are individuals directly employed by the jurisdictional governmental public health agency.

What supportive information is required?

Each Community Collective is required to identify the local organization that will manage the grant administration and financial requirements. The collective’s application should make clear that the identified organization has experience with such activities and has the capacity to manage and distribute the funds and create and submit the necessary grant required reports. The organization’s administrative contact and their contact information must be submitted. In addition, they will need to submit a formal letter of support from that organization’s chief officer. Applicants may choose to include up to 4 letters of support, if needed, to demonstrate how each member of the community collective meets the selection criteria.

Are there specific educational pre-requisites, such as college degrees, for the individual applicants?

No.

What are the restrictions for the $100,000 to support community capacity building activities?

The funds should be used for any efforts that directly support community health improvements. The culminating activities could include establishing a new collaborative or enhancing an existing one.

Will the Community Collective be required to use funds from the $100,000 for traveling to the in-person convenings?

No, the NPO at USF will be supporting all travel arrangements and costs.

Do we need to submit a budget?

No, Community Collaboratives will be determining how to use the funds as part of their participation in the initiative.

What will the reporting requirements be?

None, other than full participation in the initiative and associated activities.

What if one of our four leaders has a scheduling conflict?

Our recommendation is to identify leaders who can fully commit to participating in components of all four modules and the capstone. We do understand things come up that you cannot plan for and will do our best to respond with reasonable accommodations

Can the $9,000 stipends be distributed to an organization to compensate for the staff time allocated towards the initiative?

No, the stipends are awarded if needed, and will be distributed from USF to the individual.

How do I submit a video or audio recording?

After recording your video or audio, you will need to upload it to an accessible site such as YouTube, Vimeo or Google Drive. You will need to copy the direct link into the box. We must be able to access your video so please adjust your settings to allow reviewers to view it. If you decide to use password protection, just make sure to include the password, after the link. For example, www.youtube.com/PHEARLESS4; Password: RegenerativeLeaders
What are the limitations of the written, audio, or video submissions?

Recordings should be no longer than five minutes in duration, and written documents or graphics should be no more than five pages, double-spaced, one-inch margins, 12pt font.

Who is making the decision on the applicants?

Applications will be reviewed by at least two individuals on a review team selected by the NPO, funders and partners. The review team will work together to make the final selections of the 15 Community Collectives.

What are the options for applicants not selected?

We invite you to sign up for our distribution list and apply for the next cohort.

Whom do I contact for assistance?

Please send an email to coph-clphp@usf.edu