Clear Harbor
A learning community for leaders committed to social change
In it together. Never lead alone.
Give yourself a place outside of the daily grind for connection, reflection, strategies, & solutions.
Be a thoughtful, rejuvenated, joyful, equitable leader.
Want to be connected and supported by other leaders while you lead?
Want a place to reflect and grow?
Want to deepen your learning with leaders who share your commitment to equity?
Want a crew (outside your office) to confide in when the going gets tough?
Want to hone new leadership, racial justice, belonging, equity & well-being skills?
Leadership can be lonely.
You make critical decisions that impact your co-workers, teams, clients, customers, community, mission, and bottom line. You implement work with lasting impacts, at times with little control of the decisions being made, or the methods you are asked to use.
And our current systems are built to isolate and silo groups and individuals from each other. We are working inside larger systems that were originally built to create wealth for a small minority while suppressing, harming, and denying access to resources, health, and well-being for the majority. We continue to navigate narratives and stories that pit us against each other, making it difficult to find common ground.
When you lead with a commitment to inclusion, equity, racial & economic justice, belonging, joy, and care, you balance collaboration and decisiveness, boldness, and vulnerability. You must have a robust set of tools and skills that demand you to stretch beyond your current capacity constantly.
You are committed to building an inclusive culture and equitable policies. You want everyone to receive fulfillment from their work while impacting the mission. You want each member of your team to feel a sense of belonging in their multitude of identities & experiences. Even though you are aware of and planning for the future, there can be many issues and needs calling for your attention now.
What we each need as we build toward a different future – is a place to be in community together – to learn and practice the ways we want to lead with other courageous leaders.
Clear Harbor was built with you in mind – so you can lead from a place of connection, reflection, joy, and wisdom.
Clear Harbor includes:
Learning, tools & practices to
- Lead while centering racial justice,
- Build creative, cohesive teams,
- Foster a strength-based, strategic, equitable culture,
- Increase well-being for you and your team.
Deep support and togetherness
- Build a community for the long haul with fellow leaders committed to just, social change
- Reduce isolation and increase creativity and initiative
Space to create solutions
- Engage with problems and strategies in new ways outside of your day-to-day work
- Hear different perspectives from peers in different sectors and roles and with coaching support
Each of us is strong and capable.
We can hold a lot… yet sometimes all the work can leave us tired, even unsure.
We are navigating how our institutions were built in the past. The systems operating behind the scenes push against the way we want to operate and work in the world – they still ask us to divide and conquer, to hurry up and disregard our impact, to make decisions efficiently, and to give answers instead of asking questions.
Clear Harbor is a space set aside to practice a different way of leading, reflecting, and being in community. We can then return to our teams, and workplaces, and offer an attentive, calm, aware leadership style that supports increased equity and belonging.
Practice, learn, and be supported by fellow leaders who are thoughtful about their leadership skills and commitment to positive community change.
At Clear Harbor, we believe that we are more powerful, more capable, healthier and kinder when we are working together and not alone. This means we need to grow the supports around leaders who are committed to justice so they can be in the work of social change for the long haul.
In Clear Harbor you will learn and practice the skills needed for equitable leadership without burnout – including real-time strategies and solutions for team development & personnel needs; maintaining your values and integrity; courageous & confident communication; policy & procedure development; & practices for navigating stress & pressure.
Want to learn with thoughtful leaders committed to just community change?
You do not need to lead alone.
Wondering what we mean when we say leader?
You can be a leader from any position in an institution.
You may work directly with the community and clients, or you may manage a team. You are a leader if you support others to move toward a greater collective purpose and to use their own strengths to improve the work.
In Clear Harbor, we support leadership across the structures of an organization, AND we talk about access to decision-making and power and address strategies based on your position within a system.
If you actively work to create social change, more equitable policies, caring ways of being in relationships with others, inclusive communication, and engagement across roles – Clear Harbor is for you.
Gain a diverse brain trust ready to listen and engage with you through the framework of their own experiences PLUS time monthly with leadership + equity coaches, a wellness coach, guest speakers & advisors who are leaders committed to equity and justice.
Your membership includes:
- Group coaching – Group drop-in coaching sessions with two Clear Harbor coaches offering reflections & partnering with you to problem solve. Each includes time to connect with fellow leaders. 1 hour every other month.
- Dockside talks – conversations and Q&A from leaders and consultants experienced in leading with racial justice, equity, and inclusion. Gain real-time insights and real-world stories and ask your questions. Quarterly live gatherings and past recordings.
- HR & Equity Support – Equitable HR, procedures, practices Q&A sessions with Andrea Paull, HR & Equity coach & consultant. 1.5 hours, bi-annually.
- Anchor Down sessions – learn tools & techniques for renewal & stress reduction you can use with your team and in your work. Led by Sashya Clark, a clinical social worker. 30 minutes live every month + audio library.
- Lead Together for Change Workshop series – includes personal vision & values, team development, decision-making, courageous conversations, talking about race & identity.
- Collab & Create Space – Facilitated & peer-support strategy & solution sessions. Each includes an artist-led creative practice. 1 hour every other month.
- 5-day Leadership Challenges – Focused leadership & equity challenges by theme. 5-day audio challenges, live bi-annually.
We value quality facilitation to build trust & support vulnerabilty.
Drop into a space that is held and supported so you can show up as your dynamic self. Group spaces are held by seasoned facilitators & coaches – including Wesley Morris, Annie Von Essen & Sashya Clark.
We are known for making spaces engaging and joyful while being direct and honest.
Plus learn from guest speakers and advisors who value integrity, honest, clarity, justice, and love.
Clear Harbor membership is for you, if you:
- Lead from a desire to make your community and country a better place for the next generations regardless of what sector you work in or position you hold.
- Commit to create belonging and inclusion in your workplace and with clients/customers.
- Want to be a part of ending racism and other forms of oppression.
- Strive to create a caring, fair culture.
- Strive to create an equitable culture and be a part of ending racism.
- Need a place to connect with other leaders in a real, no BS way, without any grandstanding.
- Crave more room to reflect, slow down, and grow.
- Enjoy listening and learning from different experiences and perspectives.
- Lead from your role or position by supporting the greater purpose of your organization’s work and using your strengths to support the potential in people and processes.
"The benefits for me have been listening to people as they bring up their leadership challenges. When I think about the folks I work with, a lot of them have been in the same organization for a long time. It's been a great way to get outside perspectives. And hear what other folks are doing. It's great to see that some of the struggles are the same. But it's also great to hear some of those other strategies and even, even hearing bold action folks can take in their positions... the different perspectives have changed how I think and challenges how I think."
It feels really good to connect with other people who are leading and dealing with their own challenges, you know every challenge is different, but I feel like there's similar threads you can learn from. It is the connection and the space to not feel like you have to show up as just a leader, like you can just show up as a human, and talk about the challenges of leadership. I also appreciate intentionally carving out the time. You could do a whole bunch of different learning opportunities, but those things fall off when you get busy. I like the pace of doing it once a month throughout the year. And I love my cohort - with the variety of work and lived experiences and the ways everyone showed up. And I enjoyed the extra learning sessions each quarter too!
Why take the time to join a community outside your workplace?
- Learn by example and from real-time stories, not curriculum.
- Build long-term connections & relationships.
- Unpack tough decisions and lessons learned.
- Reflect outside your own work environment & hurried schedule.
- Make strategic goals & have support completing your goals.
- Continue to improve your leadership skills through peer stories + quarterly guest speakers and workshops on topics, including team development, planning, building a culture of belonging, inclusion & anti-racism, workplace well-being, & more.
Why have a trained facilitator, instead of going to a networking gathering?
- Thoughtful questions allow everyone across diverse experiences to participate fully.
- Conversations stay focused away from knee-jerk advice-giving and on listening & sharing.
- Discussion is supported for multiple, diverse perspectives while centering marginalized identities and experiences.
- Increased confidentiality and accountability for how folks are in relationships with each other.
- Dialogue and reflection are deepened.
How much does Clear Harbor cost?
Clear Harbor membership is set on a sliding scale. Members can pay a full amount that supports other members if they work in an institution without the ability (or willingness) to pay for professional development. We have a mid-range tier for individuals working at an institution with smaller budgets. And a price for individuals working at grassroots institutions.
Many organizations with large budgets do not actively invest in the development of their leaders, support of their staff, or measures that support equitable change. We recognize this and encourage leaders applying for Clear Harbor to use this as a necessary conversation starter to change policies and understanding of leaders and Boards about what is necessary to support a positive, inclusive culture long-term at an organization.
"I had never been in this kind of leadership program because it's coaching and it's a small group, but it's about leading, it's not training, so I wasn't fully sure what to expect, but it exceeded my expectations from the beginning. One of the biggest things that I think has been really helpful is developing the competence in my leadership skills. I feel like one of the really amazing things that Clear Harbor has given me is the confidence in what I bring to the table and the way that I show up in this work. I really love the the cross sector piece of it. I already have a network of fundraisers that I go to - a really amazing group of fundraisers of color. There's something about folks who have no idea what it's like to fundraise, being able to give their insights in a really different way."
"There was just this reciprocal relationship of giving and receiving and giving and receiving. These are other real leaders facing real challenges that are being vulnerable enough to say, I need help. And here's my challenge. And helping someone else to process their issues, and come to a solution - being solution oriented just was amazing. And then for that to be reciprocated such that when it came my time and it wasn't fluff. What I received in the moment I actually implemented and got results. They were things that resonated in me, things that were actually doable and real. It was significantly high level, well thought out feedback."
Clear Harbor Facilitators
Wesley Morris – Cohort Facilitator
Wesley (he/him) is a dedicated coach, facilitator, community organizer, chaplain, and internationally recognized leader. His work for more than a decade with the Beloved Community Center of Greensboro, home of the nation’s first “Community Truth and Reconciliation Process” uniquely positions him to guide those interested in intergenerational learning, historical archiving, and community organizing. Currently, he is the Associate Director of Southern Vision Alliance, a justice-centered values-based “grassroots intermediary” organized to provide capacity building, coaching, and technical assistance to frontline organizing projects, leadership programs, and collaborations led by directly-impacted communities in the US South.
In high-pressure situations, he pulls from his formal training and practical experience to unlock clarity for those who are seeking to change the world we live in.
Wesley graduated from North Carolina Agricultural Technical State University and Union Theological Seminary (NYC).
In his free time, he enjoys traveling, reading, writing, listening to his vinyl record collection, playing basketball, and watching live sporting events.
Annie Von Essen – Cohort Facilitator
Annie (she/her) is a strategic and organizational development consultant, executive coach, and social worker. Annie is the founder of Vessel Strategy & Consulting. Vessel’s consulting work supports small businesses and organizations in building engaged teams, efficient systems, practical strategy, and more equitable & inclusive cultures to implement effective community change.
She is a diversity, equity, and inclusion facilitator for Social Design’s diversity & leadership firm. For five years, she was a part of the national youth facilitation team with the White Privilege Conference, an annual anti-racism conference.
Sashya Clark – Anchor Down Wellness Session Facilitator
Sashya (she/her) is a clinical social worker and therapist. She works to forge genuine connections to help clients and students feel valued, cared for, and heard. She has a warm and relational style and integrates mindfulness, nurturing compassion for self and others, and deepening relationship with intuition into her counseling work. She employs an integrative therapeutic approach using humanistic, collaborative, and feminist & multicultural perspectives. Sashya hopes clients can find healing through connection with others and with their authentic self and inner wisdom.
Sashya received her MSW from the University of Washington.
In her free time, Sashya loves spending time with her partner and two children and is blessed with a robust and beloved community. She rests and heals through connection to nature, dancing, singing, yoga, reading, tarot, and knitting.
Collaborators & Guest Speakers
Jada Monica Drew is an engaging facilitator and speaker who has trained thousands in how to communicate clearly, how to become more efficient members of a team and how to implement inclusive policy and practices. Her specialty is catalyzing the growth of individuals and organizations. She serves as the lead consultant of Social Designs Consulting and is the author of three books.
Roberto Ascalon specializes in facilitating creative conversations and healthy intercultural dialogue. He is a poet, performer, group facilitator and veteran master teaching artist. In 2007 he co-founded local nonprofit FEEST: the Food Empowerment Education Sustainability Team.
Sara Lawson, MPA, PCC, CPCC brings 20+ years' leadership experience to support organizations and individuals with big dreams and ambitious goals. She is passionate about the role that mission-driven organizations and socially-conscious businesses have in strengthening communities. She is co-founder of Shorthand Consulting.
Alessandra Pollock helps organizations develop insight into operations, workload, and performance and then use those insights to make smart, meaningful change for better results. She enjoys building sustainable and continuously improving systems and coaching individuals through every stage of the data and analytic life cycle.
Andrea Paull has facilitated workshops centered on racial equity, managing for bias, building cultural capacity and transformation for the past 16 years. She has dedicated her life to supporting leaders who are committed to creating extraordinary results towards a just + equitable world. She is also certified by the International Coaching Federation. She offers Equitable HR, procedures, and practices Q&A sessions.
Clear Harbor Advisors
Clear Harbor was created out of the request of leaders working with Vessel Strategy & Consulting. It continues to be supported and held in accountability by a group of current and past Clear Harbor members. We thank each leader for their feedback and advice in the development of Clear Harbor’s community.
Andrew Chin
Shannon Woodard
Rehana Lanewala
Elise Edwards
Dana Guy
You read the whole page… you must be intrigued.
Join us to be a part of a small, supportive, engaged group of peers working toward a more just world.
At Vessel Consulting, we value and believe…
Our creative potential is stronger together.
We believe the world needs spaces where leaders are supported and can collaborate to build a more just world.
We believe in racial justice, that Black Lives Matter,
and in equal LGBTQIA+ rights, gender rights,
and disability rights.
We work to increase belonging, inclusion, and equity and to dismantle false superiority, racism, and colonial ways of being and thinking. We recognize this ongoing change process requires humility, empathy, learning, forgiveness, and love.
At Vessel Consulting and in Clear Harbor, we strive to build together, lead with imagination, foster care & well-being, practice courage & understanding, and create joy-filled transformation for racial and social justice.
Want even more details?
Leading with accountability Cohorts
Clear Harbor offers small group coaching for leaders who are in positions of power, high accountability, and decision making authority. Membership to these groups is offered once a year. Leaders apply to join. Leaders can join from within the larger Clear Harbor community.
The next application for Leading with accountability opens September 2023.
Once a month, you make time to meet in a relaxed, supported environment to reflect, strategize & get re-charged with a small group of 6 to 8 leaders. Your cohort is designed to include a range of sectors, backgrounds, and personal experiences. Every group member is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion, including anti-racism and anti-oppression. Cohorts commit to meeting together for one year.
Your membership includes:
- All offerings, workshops, guest speakers, and group coaching in the Clear Harbor Community
- AND monthly 2-hour energizing, confidential small group coaching & support (MAX 8 people at a time), for 1 year.
Clear Harbor small cohort members are:
- C-suite, Executive, or Director level leaders who oversee a team, manage a budget, and deal with complex decisions daily.
- Accountable for business, organizational, or departmental decisions and outcomes.
- Accountable for a vision of positive community change.
You can join Clear Harbor now and apply for a small cohort when they open In the fall. Have questions? Feel free to email us.