Participants & Concentrators

Students begin their leadership journey in PHL Lab with the Welcome Meeting and have the opportunity to meet the instructors and cohort. To lay the foundation for transformational leadership work, students will learn and apply the program’s teaching and learning framework.

Welcome Meeting
Thursday Sept. 28, 2023
1:00PM – 1:50PM ET
Room: TBD

Saturday Retreats are opportunities to take a deep dive into leadership theory and frameworks. Students will learn and develop leadership tools and skills by adapting them in various experiential learning activities.

Students deepen their self-awareness by looking at their past, present, and future through structured exercises and reflection. In the Self-Assessment Retreats, students utilize assessment tools to identify areas of strength and growth in their understanding of themselves as leaders and learners. These small group sessions provide space for deeper conversations and discussions.

The retreats include in-depth teaching on leadership theory. The session consists of introductions to various theories or concepts.  Our facilitators will then guide students through experiential learning activities with reflections to help students anchor their learning. Topics vary from year to year, but we have covered Visions and Values, Difficult Conversations, Conflict Management, Listening, Power and Privilege, Teaming, etc.

These sessions are highly experiential and will require students to engage in the content and with their peers. Pre-work and readings will be assigned before each session, and attendance is mandatory. Please see below for this year’s schedule and meeting times.

Saturday Retreat 1
Saturday Oct. 14, 2023
9:30AM – 3:00PM ET
Room: TBD

Saturday Retreat 2
Saturday Nov. 4, 2023
9:30AM – 3:00PM ET
Room: TBD

Saturday Retreat 3
Saturday Dec. 2, 2023
9:30AM – 3:00PM ET
Room: TBD

The use of reflective learning which typically involves thoughtful self-examinations to gain deeper insights and improve future outcomes are vital to the development of a leader. To further enrich students’ understanding of leadership concepts and topics we use assessments and assignments to facilitate reflective learning.

Assessment and Assignment instructions/deadlines will be posted on Canvas. Students must turn in deliverables by the deadline:

• Leadership Circle Profile Assessment
• Reflection Assignments
• Leadership Goals

Mentors are central to supporting leadership development. PHL Lab’s Executive Coaches are experienced Harvard Staff or Alumni who work in public health education or in the delivery of public health. The coaches support students through conversations, advice, and connection to resources on self-awareness and leadership development.

Only Concentrators will be assigned an Executive Coach and student preference is included in the coach matching process. Concentrators are required to meet with their coach a minimum of three times during the spring semester. Required documentation of the meeting will be submitted through Canvas.

• Coach match process & preference submissions (Mid January and completed remotely)
• First Coaching Session (Completed in the month of February)
• Second Coaching Session (Completed in the month of March)
• Third Coaching Session (Completed in the month of April)

Throughout the Spring semester, Concentrators will dedicate their time to honing the leadership skills cultivated in the Fall and through their 10-Credit Course Work, by engaging in collaborative exercises within their peer groups. Additionally, they will actively seek opportunities to further integrate and apply their leadership development within their individual practices, extending beyond the scope of the PHL Lab.

Launch Meeting
Thursday Feb. 15, 2024
5:30PM – 7:20PM ET
Room: TBD

Concentrator Saturday Retreat
Saturday Apr. 13, 2024
9:00AM – 5:00PM ET
Room: TBD

Assessment and Assignment instructions/deadlines will be posted on Canvas. Students must complete/turn in deliverables by the deadline:

• Leadership Circle Profile 1:1 Debrief
  • Students will sign up for a 60 min one-on-one meeting with an instructor to debrief their report.
• Peer Group Meetings
• Final Reflection Assignment

As the leadership development topics covered in the PHL Lab program are not exhaustive, students who choose to continue as a Concentrator in the spring semester are required to complete 10 credits of additional coursework in order to foster well-rounded leadership development. We highly suggest that those of you planning to complete the PHL Lab program as a concentrator and only have 1 year at HSPH, to take some of your leadership coursework in the fall semester. For those who will be at HSPH beyond 1 year, you have a maximum of 2 years to complete the 10 credits.

Please view the Approved Leadership Courses website for more information.