Coro Perspective: A Difference Maker

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Coro Perspective A Difference Maker

• Allison Hawk Collinger
• St. Louis Fellows 1989

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Never doubt that a group of thoughtful committed
individuals can change the world. Indeed, it is
the only thing that ever has.

• Margaret Mead

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What we are going to cover

• When and where did you participate in Coro? What
  did you learn?
• Coro Tool Kit
• Examples
• Small group exercise
• Close

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What did you get out of Coro?

• When and where do you do Coro program?
• What did you learn?
• What tool do you use most?

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Lessons Learned

• Common experiences across trainers, across the
  years, across cities
• Learned about the tip of the iceberg
• Opened us up to ambiguity and getting something
  out of every experience
• Raised our connections antennae

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• Framework for all of my work at
  Fleishman-Hillard pr St. Louis Rams/Rams
  Foundation and in strategic consulting practice,
  AHC Consulting
• Opened myself up hard work, learned to listen,
  made good connections, had good mentors, learned
  from my mistakes

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Strategic Partnerships

• Visualize success
• Assemble the right people and organizations
  (think Coro sectors)
• Be the tenacious tortoise slow and steady makes
  the difference
• Dont take no for an answer forgiveness not
  permission
• Use obstacles as learning opportunities for
  better solution
• Confidence and passion make the difference!

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Examples

• Healthy Youth Partnership (healthyyouthpartnership
  .org)
• Retained Coro to do blind research on WIGO
• Results started a process Rams and Greater St.
  Louis Community Foundation retained Coro trained
  facilitator
• Fellow retained to create website, etc.
• Growing collaborative includes more than 70
  organizations

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Examples

• Diversity Awareness Partnership (dapstl.org)
• 89 of St. Louisans said that they would do
  something about race and tolerance if they knew
  what to do, where to go
• DAP is one stop resource for information on
  whats going on through website
• Awareness on issue driven by St. Louis sports
  teams through all their vehicles
• Give Respect, Get Respect program for middle and
  high school loosely based on Fellows program

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Examples

• Rebranding for St. Louis Marathon now GO! St.
  Louis (gostlouis.org)
• Organization (led by WIL grad) wanted to give
  more back to community
• Interactive research/focus groups conducted
  (using Coro sector model)
• Broadened mission Inspiring Fitness One Step at
  a Time to start the conversation on all
  population segments getting active utilizing
  all partners (non-profits, schools, sponsors in
  getting out GO! message)

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Key Skills

• Learned to ask lots of good questions to get to
  WIGO
• Identified ways to make connections
• Obtained confidence in skills
• Developed a framework based upon the Coro sector
  model who needs to be at the table the most
  diverse group gives the best solution whether
  you are selling a product or solving a community
  issue

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Small Group

• How do you use your Coro tools?
• How has time refined your Coro learnings?
• Share a specific example of community and/or
  business situation with group.
• Come back together as group to share.

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Small Group

• Report out
• Discussion

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Where do we go from here?

• Engaged citizens can make a difference in this
  country and in this world
• Coro participants are engaged and have an edge
• Use your edge to make a difference
• Revisit what Coro meant to you and how you can be
  a more effective leader reflect and recharge
• Retain Coro as a tool for your business or
  non-profit making you better and helping to
  sustain Coro into future
• Find a way to make a difference!

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• Allison H. Collinger
• AHC Consulting LLC
• 2025 S. Brentwood Blvd., Suite 201
• St. Louis, MO 63144
• allison_at_ahcconsulting.com
• 314/680-1583