2026 Care for Disruptive Leadership Program
Investing in wellness for BIPOC leaders disrupts the conventional skill development model by focusing on retention and wellness first
The application for 2026 is now open! Don’t hesitate to apply or share!
“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity you’re giving to people who have probably never asked themselves some of the questions this program centers. You’re teaching future leaders to stop and think through their decision-making processes, interrogate the systems that often times leave them feeling voiceless in this work, and collectively imagine a bigger and brighter future where we’re all seen fully and authentically in our leadership. That is a gift that some people spend their whole lives trying to find.” - 2025 CDL participant
Background Many BIPOC leaders can often feel unsupported, overwhelmed, or even unsafe in entering public office or other leadership positions. These experiences can often lead to burnout and an exodus from community advocacy. In 2022, OFL felt the need to respond to this dynamic, and launched Care for Disruptive Leadership (CDL) to look at sustaining BIPOC leaders toward a racially just Oregon. We do this by particularly focusing on wellness and a shared supportive environment for development and retention in our movement.
About the program:
We will co-create monthly virtual spaces to discuss topics like:
Personal wellness goals,
Examining our relationship to money and power,
Unpacking the impact of compliance and governance to our state of being,
Owning our personal stories and narratives
Working with generative conflict as a healthy path towards change, and
Examining our imposter syndrome so we can dismantle unhealthy thoughts about ourselves
Additional components of the program include one-on-one support, added meet up opportunities for affinity spaces, and access to financial resources for increasing one’s holistic wellness.
Selection Criteria: OFL’s ideal applicant is a community-centered, BIPOC leader, either emerging and established. We are working to reach those who may not normally take the time to explore their wellness and leadership or those who are struggling with imposter syndrome! Please consider yourself or someone you know who could be a good fit! Your availability to participate in program events will be taken into account for application consideration.
We want to reduce barriers to entry and OFL will help with accrued costs to attend our in person orientation and closing session which will be held in Portland. There are accessibility resources for out of town travel, and closed captioning services. These questions are only asked after you've been admitted into the program as they shouldn't be a condition of your admission.
Due to the nature of this program (c3), this opportunity is not open to candidates running for office.
REQUIRED AVAILABILITY AND ATTENDANCE:
If accepted, you will be expected to attend 75% of the following dates (occurring the last Thursdays of the month and skipping July)
March 26th : In person in Portland : 12-3pm
April 30th : Virtual on Zoom : 10am-12pm
May 28th : Virtual on Zoom : 10am-12pm
June 25th : Virtual on Zoom : 10am-12pm
August 27th : Virtual on Zoom : 10am-12pm
September 24th : In person in Portland : 12-3pm
Apply Here:
Application closes 11:59pm on February 16, 2026.
We so appreciate your labor and interest in filling this out and hope we can support you in this program!
