The Jordan Institute Fellowship for Social Work Leaders

• Launching in 2025, the Jordan Institute Fellowship for Social Work Leaders is a 6-month professional development program designed to fill a gap in the support available to social work professionals. Hosted by the Jordan Institute for Families at the UNC School of Social Work, this fellowship equips experienced leaders with the tools, knowledge, and community needed to navigate personal, professional, and organizational challenges.  

• The 2025 cohort will be the inaugural class of the fellowship. Through a mix of skill-building, peer connection, and reflective practice, participants will strengthen their capacity to lead with authenticity, resilience, and impact. 

• One on one exclusive access to thought leaders in the social impact space

• Relevant and high impact content to support professional learning and development

• Life directed personal and professional plan you can begin to execute on day one

• In person self-care and reflection retreat space for professionals

• Community and ongoing connection with peers and other thought leaders

• Designation as a Jordan Institute Social Work Fellow at the completion of the program along with ongoing access to programming and community over time. Fellows can add this designation on their resumes, signature lines, and will continue to be listed on the Fellow website over time.

Our approach focuses on three areas – leading oneself, leading teams, and leading organizations. The Fellowship is designed to offer a mix of skill-building, peer connection, and reflective practice.

The program has a component focused on personal and professional development and self care. This work includes opportunities to reflect on values, ethics and identity while building deep listening skills. Each fellow will have the chance to craft and begin to implement a personal/professional development plan. They will have a variety of supports available to assist them including access to experts, coaching, training materials, and additional workshops/webinars.

The fellowship will begin with two opportunities for building connection and personal planning:

• October 9th from 12-1pm – Welcome webinar

• October 23rd-24th – In-person retreat

Fellows will also participate in 6 monthly 2-hour skill-building workshops and 6 monthly 1-hour sessions that offer the opportunity to reflect on additional content and support peer to peer learning. The proposed dates (during the work day) are listed below along with the topic. Information about speakers, resources and learning objectives will be available to fellows once they have been selected:

• November 6th from 2-4pm – Workshop 1 – Advancing Organizational Well-being with Trauma-Informed Leadership

• November 20th from 12-1pm – Lunch Session – Crucial Conversations

• December 4th from 2-4pm – Workshop 2 – Hot Topics in Leadership

• December 18 from 12-1pm – Lunch Session – Joy & Rest

• January 8 from 2-4pm – Workshop 3 (slightly off schedule due to New Years Day) – Dreaming Change into Broken Systems

• January 22 from 12-1pm – Lunch Session – Continuous Quality Improvement

• February 5 from 2-4pm – Workshop 4 – Funding the Work

• February 19  from 12-1pm – Lunch Session – Abundance Mindsets

• March 5 from 2-4pm – Workshop 5 – Supporting Teams and a Diverse Workforce

March 19 from 12-1pm – Lunch Session – Working Across Difference

• April 2 from 2-4pm – Workshop 6 – Building Influence and Shifting P(p)olicy

• April 16th from 12-1pm – Lunch Session – Power Analysis and Networking Skills

• May – in-person celebration

Fellows will also have access to a UNC instructional site with additional resources, journal prompts, and discussion and chat platforms to encourage sharing, accountability for working toward goals, networking, and problem-solving opportunities. All of the information needed for the fellowship including zoom links and logistics will be available on this platform.

Fellows will be invited to additional learning sessions with thought leaders through virtual ‘fireside’ chats. Dates and speakers will be shaped by the Fellows’ interest.

Applicants will be North Carolina-based social work professionals who have worked in a managerial or leadership role for at least 5 years.

We hope to engage with social work leaders from a variety of backgrounds, including those who serve in rural areas, work in agencies of different sizes, and people with different identities, perspectives and focus populations. 

Fellows will be open to learning, self-discovery and be interested in connecting with other social work leaders and peers.

Fellows will commit to the full 6 month program and attend the majority of the workshops and gatherings. The proposed dates are below. Of note, these are during the work day.

• October 9th from 12-1 Welcome Webinar

• October 23rd-24th in-person retreat

• November 6th from 2-4pm – Webinar 1

• November 20th from 12-1pm – Virtual lunch meet

• December 4th from 2-4pm – Webinar 2

• December 18th from 12-1pm – Virtual lunch meet

• January 8th from 2-4pm – Webinar 3 (slightly off schedule due to New Years Day)

• January 22nd from 12-1pm – Virtual lunch meet

• February 5th from 2-4pm – Webinar 4

• February 19th  from 12-1pm – Virtual lunch meet

• March 5th from 2-4pm – Webinar 5

• March 19th from 12-1pm – Virtual lunch meet

• April 2 from 2-4pm – Webinar 6

• April 16th from 12-1pm – Virtual lunch meet

• May – In-person celebration

Applicants are asked to submit their information via this link.

There is NO financial cost to apply or participate in the fellowship.

Join us for a virtual FAQ Session on August 18th from noon-1pm. Register here to join the session.

Applications are due by midnight on Monday September 15, 2025

All responses need to be 300 words or less. We have included the questions below for those who may wish to reflect on them in advance.

General Information about you:

1. Demographic information: (name, contact information, employer information, job role, LinkedIn – optional)  

2. Resume/CV  

Questions:  

1. Why are you interested in this leadership program? How do you hope to grow as a leader? What specific skills or knowledge do you hope to gain?  

2. Where are you on your leadership journey? How has your career evolved, and what experiences have shaped your leadership style? 

3. What unique perspective or experience will you bring to the cohort? How will your background, expertise, or lived experience contribute to the learning environment? 

4. In your opinion what are the most pressing concerns/needs for social work leaders in North Carolina at this moment in time? 

5. The Fellowship requires a two-day retreat in October and a minimum commitment of 4 hours a month from October 2025-February 2026 as well as a closing gathering in February. The monthly, 2-hour workshops and 1 hour meet-up will take place during the work week as will the retreat. Are you able to meet this requirement? 

6. Is there anything you would need from the Jordan Institute for Families for your employer to support your participation? Please describe. 

7. The 2025 cohort will be the inaugural class of the fellowship. If accepted, you will be in the first cohort of this fellowship program. In full transparency, we will be seeking a lot of feedback and input from participants as we go. How do you feel about being in a brand-new program? 

Applications are open. Online application.

Application Q&A session: August 18th from 12-1pm – Click here to register for the session (FAQs from the session will be posted here after the session)

Applications due: September 15th by midnight

Application decisions: September 29th

Deadline to accept Fellowship: October 3rd

Accepted applicant welcome webinar: October 9th from 12-1pm

Questions? Email – jordaninstitute@unc.edu