Writing & Ideas
What I’m Learning in Public
My writing is a place to think out loud. The ideas shared here emerge from conversations with leaders, experiences within organizations, observations in philanthropy, and questions I keep returning to: what helps organizations grow, what supports leaders through moments of change, and how philanthropy and civic institutions can create lasting impact.
These reflections are shaped by my work alongside leaders. Rather than offering definitive answers, they capture ideas I'm actively exploring in real time. They are part of an ongoing practice of inquiry and learning.
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Bush Foundation
Leadership Programs
August 17, 2020Written by Alexandra Siclait for the Leadership Programs at the Bush Foundation
If you have looked at the Bush Fellowship application questions, you may have seen the words large-scale change. But what do those words mean in terms of the Bush Fellowship?
The Bush Fellowship invests in your leadership development based on your leadership track record and vision for transformational change in your community. If you become a Fellow, we are investing in you because you think of making vast changes in your community and have partnered with people to identify problems. You are considering extensive shifts in systems, processes, or patterns of outcomes. Read more here. -
August 27, 2019
Bush Foundation
Leadership Programs
August 27, 2019
Written by Alexandra Siclait for the Leadership Programs at the Bush Foundation
I will never forget it. Looking me square in the eyes, visionary artist and choreographer Liz Lerman said to me, "Resist the urge to give counsel because multiple truths exist. Questions are the product—investigative inquiry."Her simple yet powerful words moved me. Liz is right. Questions do open the mind to think bigger and differently.
As a Bush Fellow, you must be grounded in why you show up to lead and get comfortable interrogating your values, identity, culture, and experiences, all of which profoundly and perpetually shape your vision. Read more here.
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Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History & Culture
Public Affairs
October 10, 2014
Written by Alexandra Siclait for Lonnie G. Bunch at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture“I create for that innocent little boy in the balcony who has come to the theatre for the first time,” Geoffrey Holder told Dance magazine in 2010. “He wants to see magic, so I want to give him magic. He sees things that his father couldn’t see.”
When I think of Geoffrey Holder, actor, composer, designer, sculptor, and painter, I cannot help but think of how this native of Trinidad and Tobago created magic in the African American experience. But unfortunately, this past Sunday, we lost Geoffrey to complications from pneumonia. He was 84. Read more here.
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Syracuse University
Public Relations Writing
Arts Leadership
October 8, 2012
Written by Alexandra Siclait for the Janklow Arts Leadership Program at Syracuse UniversitySYRACUSE, N.Y. — There is no denying it. He is evocative, engaging, and delightfully charming. But perhaps most captivating is his infectious smile, which is so disarming. Talk to him for five minutes or talk to him for an hour; regardless, Mark Nerenhausen will leave a considerable impression on the most cynical. Few leaders can truly match Mark's achievements. His accomplishments are not in scholarly publications like Congress Considered or the Journal of Conflict Resolution. However, the underpinning drives of his life's accomplishments are all around us: art and culture. Read more here.
Partner With Me
I welcome opportunities to collaborate with organizations, publications, and cultural institutions through essays, commissioned writing, institutional reflections, editorial contributions, and strategic dialogue exploring leadership, culture, philanthropy, systems change, and institutional transformation.