CCSF coaching is…
- Centered on mutual understanding and appreciation
- Intended to support you as you strive to achieve extraordinary results—both in terms of your education but also with respect to your personal growth and development as a Coca-Cola Scholar. The Coaching process is intended to help deepen your self-awareness, examine your approach to learning, improve your performance, and enhance your quality of life. The degree to which these objectives are reached will largely depend on the Coaching relationships as they develop and your commitment to the overall process.
- In each session, there will be a focus of conversations that explore. Some of these topics will be inspired by some of your session pre-work. Other times the topics will emerge based on the issues and challenges you are working through at the moment. Your Coach’s goal during these conversations is to listen and contribute observations and questions. You and your Coach will talk about “going to the balcony” to explore your issues from different points of view to gain greater clarity and focus on how to effectively manage your challenges and move toward effective action.
- Coaches are NOT expected or intended to be mentors with specific industry or discipline expertise. Coach-Coachee pairings may be intentional with some commonality, or the commonalities may be discovered through the coaching process.
- Coaches are NOT consultants hired to address or fix a particular challenge in a Coachee's life. Coaches are not expected to know all the answers or resources available on your home campus or in your community.
- Coaches are NOT therapists or counselors. Coaches may refer Coachees to explore campus resources to provide the support necessary beyond the coach's charge.
- Coaches ARE thoughtful listeners and advocates who support coachees to set and achieve goals to continue along the path of being socially conscious, service-minded visionary leaders who refresh the world!
CCSF Coaching Logistics and Expectations
- Six sessions (roughly one per month, from September to April) of approximately 1 hour (via phone, Skype, Facetime, etc.)
- Session preparation: Please complete any session pre-work at least 12-24 hours prior to an upcoming session.
- Scheduling sessions: You and your Coach will determine the best way to set up our sessions. Since you both have busy schedules, let’s do our best to identify a good time and stick to it. Also, when you are meeting for a coaching session, it’s best if you can find a quiet place free of distractions.
- Rescheduling of sessions: If you or your Coach need to reschedule a session, commit to informing each other with at least 24 hours advance notice.
- This is intended to be, formally, a one-year commitment, though many past Coach/Coachee pairings remain in touch and provide ongoing opportunities for mutual reflection and support.
What does it mean to have a Coach?
Your Coach will focus on two primary areas:
- The transition to college, both in-class and out-of-class challenges
- Working with you to set and achieve, or make progress towards achieving, a goal of your choosing, ideally during the Coaching engagement
NOTE: Your Coach does not replace any assigned, official advisors at your college.
Your Coach will ask you questions that will help you decide what is important to you. Specifically, your Coca-Cola Scholars Coach will ask questions that help you reflect on your experiences, identify insights from those experiences, and apply that learning to subsequent experiences.
In addition to your six sessions, we will provide you with some "pre-work" to do before the sessions to stimulate particular reflections. It will be vital that this pre-work is done to ensure a meaningful coaching experience.
At the mid-point and end of the Coaching experience, we will also solicit your feedback on the experience through short surveys, and may choose to conduct interviews as well. We know you will be very busy so we will keep our requests at a minimum.
Who will be my coach?
We have called on our top alumni to join several staff from the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation to complete a rigorous Coaching training curriculum designed just for Coke Scholars through a partnership with the Center for Creative Leadership. We will regularly communicate with Coaches throughout the year to ensure they have everything they need to support Coachees.
How did you pick me?
We used stratified random sampling to select scholars to invite to participate in this program. We want Coachees to represent the many backgrounds of our Scholars.
What if I say no?
If you are unable to participate in this pilot experience, we will invite another Scholar to participate instead. Don't participate out of guilt, a feeling of obligation, or because you just can't say no! Declining this invitation will not affect your standing in the Coca-Cola Scholars Program or impact your scholarship award.
If you have any questions not addressed, please email Jamie Williams, Director of Scholarships, at jwilliams@coca-cola.com.
We are excited that you have accepted the opportunity to participate in the Coca-Cola Scholars Program's Coaching experience. Please bookmark this site for important updates, resources, and the pre-work that will be required before each Coaching session.
