Blog Post

Shortly after completing ACI with Cohort XII, I shared with them a set of pictures taken during our Thursday night exam completion celebration. (Say THAT ten times fast!) After sensing the positive energy around those memories, I was asked to share them through a blog entry on the Columbia Coaching Learning Network. Unfortunately, as it happens sometimes online, the blog post dematerialized after pressing the Submit button. I like to think that the likelihood I made a mistake along the way is minimal, luckily technology can’t answer back, yet!

The focus of the entry was a reflection on what I believe makes the CCCP program special. When talking to different people about what brought them to Columbia throughout ECI, the Practicum and at the beginning of ACI, I often heard comments about the importance of Columbia’s reputation, the flexibility of the curriculum, the cultural diversity of the attendants, and, often, that it had been recommended to them by valued friends or colleagues. I shared in many of these views until completing the back-end intensive.

The shift occurred while looking at the photos as I uploaded them onto Google+. (Click Here for the Album!) I discovered something that caught my attention and it was what prompted the title of the album. In a way, throughout this process, we lived together and in a particularly intense way, this was true during our final week in Tarrytown. There is no question we ate, the food was plentiful and very good, but after having spent so much time together we were sharing meals as friends. Some of us prayed before the written exam - the first in a very long time for many - especially after realizing we were a bit shaky on the detailed framework descriptions we had to match for Part II. We also played during our celebration, and enjoyed ourselves very much as you can see in the photos. Most importantly to me though, was the love expressed through gratitude. Those pictures speak volumes about the connections we made during the program. It all came together at that moment, when we were told that we had all completed ACI successfully, there was a spontaneous eruption of so many expressions of gratitude, it was heartwarming to be a part of that moment.

Columbia provided a rich learning environment through experiential learning paired with valuable academic substance. This, along with the interactions with faculty, and in particular with my program’s sisters and brothers in arms, was the real added value for me.

Now, it’s your turn! Whether you were a part of this summer’s cohort, you come from one in the past, you are on your way to February’s ACI or you are a friend of the program, what makes the CCCP different or special for you? How much richer was your experience because of the people you met?

Say more!