Pittsfield — Last Friday, March 10, a group of 15 emerging and experienced leaders from the Black community convened at 1Berkshire to participate in the first in a trio of leadership workshops aimed at empowering individuals to positively impact their communities. As to the shared thread among the disparate individuals? Together they represent the inaugural cohort of the Blackshires Leadership Accelerator Program—a project of the Blackshires Community Empowerment Foundation. Weekly workshops, a dozen in total, will culminate in late May with a graduation celebration; each member who successfully completes the program will be qualified to receive additional grant funding to support an ongoing or future endeavor.
“[This project] was born out of an Idea Jam … at the beginning of the pandemic … [which identified] several priority issues for the Black community … one of which was creating leadership development supports and fostering of ongoing leadership in the Black community,” Dubois Thomas, Blackshires president and lead facilitator of the Leadership Accelerator, told The Edge.
The pilot was ultimately made possible via an Urban Agenda Grant through the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development (EOHED), a program focused on supporting economic vitality and cultivating stronger urban neighborhoods across Massachusetts. With additional support from Berkshire Bank, Berkshire United Way, and 1Berkshire (which serves as the organization’s fiscal sponsor), the Blackshires was able to offer stipends to 15 community members keen on participating in the pilot.
“I love having these organizations behind me,” said Ranisha Grice, owner of Grice Beauty in Pittsfield, after learning about Blackshires at the Women & Minority Owned Business Certification Summit at the Berkshire Innovation Center in January. In the ensuing months, Grice has been awarded $4,000 from the Berkshire Black Economic Council to expand her business and has connected with Berkshire Community College to find interns to assist her in the process.
Grice and her fellow cohort members convened for the first time in early March, during a day-and-a-half retreat at Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Lenox, to learn about priority issues facing the Black community and discuss plans for developing successful solutions. In keeping with the goals of the EOHED, the Leadership Accelerator recognizes that the path to success lies in tapping into the unique local assets already available to community members—as evidenced by a robust range of Community Partners, including Berkshire Regional Planning Commission, the City of Pittsfield, Berkshire Health Systems, DEI Outdoors, Westside Legends, Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires, and African Diaspora Mental Health Association.
Launching a leadership accelerator has long been an aspiration for Thomas who relocated to the region three and a half years ago. While employed by Central Berkshire Habitat for Humanity, he was engrossed in community engagement and planning efforts, largely around revitalization of Pittsfield’s West Side neighborhood—work that put Thomas into contact with a lot of emerging community leaders who he noticed needed additional support in order to succeed. Over the course of his three-year tenure with the organization, Thomas became certain that leadership development served as a foundation to so much work in the community. Since stepping away from that role, he has been able to focus his energy on making sure there were resources in place to get programming up and running.
“From the get-go, we definitely designed a program around building some camaraderie, building a team, and helping them work cooperatively and collaboratively,” said Thomas, who—along with his colleagues and co-facilitators John Lewis, Devin Shea, and Ari Zorn—was pleasantly surprised that, by the end of day one, “everyone was really vibing with one another and getting along” despite participants coming from across generations and sectors ranging from outdoor engagement for the BIPOC community, art, and health to small business owners, political activists, and crossover between community and youth engagement.
“Everybody is fully invested in this opportunity for themselves and what it means for them as a group and, by extension, what it means for the community,” said Thomas of the palpable enthusiasm permeating the conference room at 1Berkshire last week. The discussion hinged on the foundational aspects of leadership as a concept—in particular, being intentional about distributing leadership within organizations. Cohort members were invited to think critically about the mechanics of leadership while developing a mission statement which will serve them in their personal impact charters—both of which will be very specific about whom they impact through their work and how. At the root is a shared commitment to grow, learn, and expand the participants’ network of like-minded individuals.
“When I do decide to put together a plan, [all of these organizations] can help me navigate the community resources and [support] people who aspire to be entrepreneurs like myself,” Grice said, offering an informal shout to the myriad connections she’s made throughout her professional career in the Berkshires. In fact, being pulled in multiple directions has, in many ways, led her to where she is today. “I didn’t know that I would need these connections that will help me get to my goals and the things I plan to do,” said Grice, who—prior to working in the spa industry and launching her own business—was a community navigator working with organizations like Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation. Today, the business owner makes her own schedule and has dedicated Fridays through May to the cohort. Beyond that, one of her goals is clear: “Reaching back to help those who don’t know how to use their voice,” said Grice, whose own voice will undoubtedly be even stronger at the close of the Leadership Accelerator.
“The fact that experience and resources exist in our communities already, and can be unearthed and leveraged for positive change, is definitely a big driving force for us,” said Thomas. In the meantime, he and his colleagues at Blackshires remain focused on making resources readily accessible—knowing that, specifically in the BIPOC and other marginalized communities, “the difficulties and obstacles of bettering yourself and your community often get in the way.”
Offering a program to the community, designed around making that accessibility easier, is what fuels Thomas. He is hopeful the Leadership Accelerator will serve as a direct pipeline to building more diversity, equity, and inclusiveness across the Berkshires—on planning boards, civic committees, and other decision-making bodies—in Pittsfield and beyond. “By supporting the growth and development of Black leaders in the community, we can create a more inclusive and equitable environment for all.”
