Changing Youth Lives

Clemson University
HEHD 8030: Creative and Ethical Leadership
Leadership Case Study
Stojanna Hollis

Changing Youth Lives

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Desire Youth Sports and Educational Services, Inc. is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit

organization strongly committed to providing athletic and educational programs for the youth of
North and South Carolina. The educational programs are designed to focus on individual
tutoring, development of study skills, social skills, and community involvement. Our sport
teams, The Charlotte Monarchs, give athletes who are currently performing at an all-star level
in school and recreational leagues an opportunity to play organized sports at an advanced level.
The Charlotte Monarchs are currently registered with the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) and
Youth Basketball of America (YBOA). Getting their message out to the masses and getting
people`s willingness to help was hard for this small unknown organization. Nevertheless,
throughout this organization all mentors, tutors, coaches, etc. promote positive behavior. Desire
Youth Sports and Educational Services have the motive to provide youth with the ability to
accomplish any goal, dream, and/or aspiration that they put their mind to. The staff desires to
reach children that are based in low income areas that are unfortunate enough to take family
vacations, get new clothes every month, buy Christmas presents, have Halloween parties, or be
rewarded for doing the right thing. Furthermore, this organization provides education in sport
programs to the youth of Charlotte Mecklenburg County with a special focus on the Northwest
and Northeast divisions of the county. The organization specializes in helping youth learn
basketball skills while promoting them to have good grades in order to continue their skill
training. This way the youth are being prepared to transition into middle school, high school, and
College. The desire is to reach out to as many young children as possible not only through
education but sports as well. Desire Youth Sports and Educational services were founded by
Jerry Hollis Sr. (my dad) and a group of other parents who children were former players of the
AAU organization, the Charlotte Stars. The idea of forming a non-profit organization blossomed

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when our 10 and under boys team went to Orlando, Florida and finished 2nd place in Nationals.
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AAU Nationals is an amazing experience and it allows youth to compete against other youth in
the same age group from across the country. That particular year there were over 500 teams in
one location and our team made it to the championship game, only losing by 2 points. However,
after this devastating defeat a lot of parents werent happy because their kids werent playing and
they felt as if they werent learning anything. Also during the weekends the team would gather
and hold fundraisers such as: car washes, fish fries, candy sells, etc. However, when it was time
to use the money the parents begin to discover that the coaches were using the funds for other
things rather than gear and equipment for the kids. Therefore, my dad and a group of other
parents decided to leave and establish the organization, Desire Youth Sports and Educational
services. In this case study I plan to provide knowledge and credible resources that will allow the
reader to understand how to tackle loyalty, honesty, and communication issues to enhance the
development of an organization. As a graduate assistant for Clemson womens basketball
program Ive learned that its imperative that these skills are tackled and mastered in order to
succeed and have an effective program.
Desire youth organization serves for 220 youth and each youth is required to meet with
his or her mentor/coach 3 times a week for 2 hours. During this meeting time the youth are
required to bring any type of homework they may have and theyre required to work on that for
an hour and the last hour is used to increase basketball knowledge and skills. However, if the
youth dont have any homework theyre required to study for upcoming test or review material
learned in that particular day/week of school. We encourage our student athletes to take pride in
their grades. Our organization houses about 20 volunteers. While this may not seem like a lot it
actually is, because adults in current days arent interested in volunteering and theyre barely

Changing Youth Lives

interested in the well-being of their children. Our volunteers consist of our coaches, tutors,
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mentors, and the executive board. While seeking volunteers we want people that are well
rounded citizens and work impactfully with our youth. The blessing with this organization is that
almost every volunteer works within the Mecklenburg school system and the ones that dont
work in the healthcare system. This way we insure that we have people that are aware of whats
being taught and the curriculum that must be met in order for our youth to be successful and not
just average.
Desire Youth has several strengths that are recognizable throughout the Charlotte
community and region. Its best practices are implemented through its tutoring and mentoring
programs, as well as the athletic programs of girls and boys basketball. This highest level places
emphasis on the learning process that each child must attain and retain to accomplish the
necessary skills to finish school and carry with him / her throughout their lifespan. To
accomplish this task, there has to be a balance of rewards and consequences if necessary. This is
the driving force behind the organization. In contrast of strength is weakness and just like any
other program, Desire has its fair share of them. One of the most prevalent weaknesses is the
lack of participation in fundraising to help keep the organization funded. There are many
fundraising opportunities throughout the year to help supplement or defray cost for uniforms or
tournament expenses, yet much neglect to support the educational side of the organization but
want to participate in the athletic programs. This program is opened to the public but first and
foremost geared to those that are underprivileged. While most dont have the resources to donate
personal finances, many could show support with help in the fundraising activities. Also with the
lack of support to fundraising upholds the problem with loyalty and communication. A lot of
time when asking the parent or guardian why they dont show up or participate most parents say

Changing Youth Lives

they didnt know about it, they had to work, didnt have a ride, or simply just didnt want to
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come. With these excuses and reoccurring problems its very difficult for the organization to
continuously grow and be able to serve more underprivileged youth.
Nevertheless, there are always solutions to each problem. Like Desire youth organization,
Im sure there are other programs that are lacking support, loyalty, funds, and communication.
While taking Dr. Garsts Creative and Ethical leadership course I discovered that a lot of times as
humans weve become accustomed to communicating through email, social media, and text
messages; these being ineffective communicating skills. Communicating with support staff
members, volunteers, and co-workers face to face are more important and suitable than sending a
text message or email. I learned that communicating face to face will help the message be
received more precise and clear, because a lot of times text messages, emails and things posted
on social media can and are often misinterpreted. With technology blossoming the way it is, its
easy to become submissive to that lifestyle and not realize how ineffective it is while trying to
manage an organization or even being a part of an organization. For instance, within Desire
youth organization my dad realized that there were a lot of miscommunicating going on and
parents not being involved effectively,. Therefore, my dad took it upon himself to call each
coach, volunteer, mentor, tutor, etc. each week to schedule a monthly meeting. While this seemed
like a lot and very time consuming my dad felt that this was very imperative in order for the
organization to run smoothly. During his monthly meeting with his support staff members he
would genuinely ask about their well-being and how they were doing and then go into details
about whats going on with their teams, etc. My dad made an effort to make it to each team game
to support each age group. Nonetheless, he would schedule a quarterly meeting with all staff

Changing Youth Lives

members to give each person the opportunity to discuss pros and cons that were being faced in
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perspective to create solutions to each of their problems.

Patrick Lencioni, the author of, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, says the fact remains
that the teambecause they are made up of imperfect human beings, are inherently
dysfunctional. This quote is very powerful because regardless of the team or organization that
an individual is working for or giving their services to must realize and understand that everyone
isnt perfect and there will be some display of dysfunction. Mr. Lencioni stated that the five
dysfunctions are: Absence of trust, fear of conflict, lack of commitment, avoidance of
accountability, and inattention to results. Desire youth suffered from the absence of trust and lack
of commitment in my opinion. Absence of trust includes the following: avoid spending time
together, dreads meetings, and doesnt utilize others skill set, hesitate to offer help outside of
their own areas of responsibility, and conceal weaknesses. For instance, the parents of our youth
use to dread participating in fundraising; therefore, there was a significant lack of attendance.
However, the organization began to give the parents incentives such as gift cards, toys for the
holidays, food from the food bank, etc. When the organization began this approach the parents
participation improved tremendously. Lack of commitment comprises two elements: clarity and
buy-in. Failure to commit includes: revisiting topics over and over, encourages second guessing
amongst the team, and creates ambiguity about direction and priorities. In contrast to failing to
commit, the board members implemented a plan to show the parents and coachs progress reports
that the tutors were responsible to keep. This was done so they could provide evidence to the
parents and coaches that their players and children were improving while being involved with
Youth Desire organization.

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Ronald Heifetz, Alexander Grashow, and Marty Linsky wrote an article on Leadership in

a (Permanent) Crisis. This article talks about adaptive leadership, fostering adaptation to change,
embracing disequilibrium and taking care of you. Heifetz, Grashow, and Linsky stated, that
leaders must adapt what and how things get done in order to thrive in tomorrows world.
Executives must develop next practices while excelling at todays best practices (Heifetz,
Grashow, and Linsky 2007). Desire youth organization utilized this when the organization began
serving youth girls within the organization. When the organization first branched away from the
Charlotte Stars there was solely a boys team composed strictly of all males. However, after
about a year of the program running, the board decided to add a girls side for sports and
education opportunities as well because they realized that girls can be just as talented in sports
and achieve great achievements academically as those males whom were participating in the
organization. Ultimately, its imperative that the support staff, volunteers, and board members
take care of themselves. Being optimistic and realistic, finding a sanctuary, finding a confidant
whos not a part of the organization, bringing more of your emotional self to the workplace and
not losing yourself are all essential keys in staying healthy and effective(Heifetz, Grashow, and
Linsky 2007).
Shaping ethics: Youth workers matter written by Joyce Walker, Cecilia Gran, and
Arnoldo Curiel speaks about how youth will imitate what they see and hear youth workers and
leaders do. This article also provides clear evidence thats its important for youth workers and
educators to be involved in personal reflection because often times than not, as humans we see
the things we do and say as right, when in actuality, it is misleading to our youth. Also, Desire
youth organization conducted yearly evaluations. These evaluations consisted of self-reflections
and a reflection of the program. For example, coaches were asked if they felt like they had grown

Changing Youth Lives

professionally and support staff members and board members were all asked to include three
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things that they felt they could work on and things that they felt like they were skilled at already.
Nevertheless, everyone was asked to give some things they felt the organization needed to
improve upon and things that the organization did well. All this information would be gathered
and discussed at the yearly annual meeting before the annual banquet. Affective learning is one
of the most commonly assessed outcomes associated with the teacher-student relationship
(Avtgis, 2001), as it governs the students motivation to learn most significantly (Rodriquez,
Plax &Kearney, 1996, p. 297). This is very important because while growing up I used to be a
student and have a mentor and tutor within Desire youth organization and one thing I vividly
remember outside of the practices are the days I had to meet with my tutor. I remember receiving
whats known as incentives such as candy for making good grades on my homework
assignments, tests, projects, etc. While this may seem small its major to our youth because its
something that will keep them involved and determined to excel in everything they do. While
receiving candy motivated me, on the upper hand, it also forced me to learn.
With this in mind, the intended goals and outcomes are to have each child/youth to obtain
a 3.0 grade point average or above and to perform on a superior level on the court. With this in
mind the mentors hope for all athletes to receive an academic scholarship or an athletic
scholarship. More so, this organization has a desire for the youth to be prepared for life beyond
college and collegiate athletics. Finally, I personally feel as though many parents should begin to
include themselves in the organizations fundraising activities. Although there is a support staff,
there should still be involvement from the parent because most of these kids do come from
underprivileged homes and families. This is something that could encourage the youth not only
to play but to work for the things that they may need in order to get ahead in life. I personally

Changing Youth Lives

would continue to get the youth involved in the organization by using sports as a key to success.
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Basically, this organization thrives off of helping the youth become better students first and
athletes second. So if we can continue to support them in the classroom and on the court I do
truly believe that this organization can become bigger than just that in Mecklenburg County.
While speaking with my dad he stated, that if he could change the life of one individual then
thats better than any amount of money because its all about the IMPACT!
Desire Youth can improve simply by implementing a transportation system in getting the
youth to and from tutoring sessions and practice. Also this transportation system can be feasible
when speaking about helping in fundraising. A lot of times I hear parents explain to my dad
about their child missing practice and or tutoring because of the lack of transportation. If there
was a way that this organization could implement this I think this program would be
unstoppable. Allowing our youth to see what it takes to be able to ascend to the next level
becomes truly important because it not only gives them a chance to work for it but to understand
the significance of why they are doing it; something that Desire Youth is continuously displaying
in its organization.

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Resources
Avtgis, T. A. (2001). Affective learning, teacher clarity, and student motivation as a function of
attributional confidence. Communication Research Reports, 18(4), 345-353.
Heifetz, R., Grashow, A., & Linsky, M. (2009). Leadership in a (permanent) crisis. Harvard
Business Review, 87(7/8), 62-69.
Lencioni, P. (2002). The five dysfunctions of a team.
Rodrguez, J. I., Plax, T. G., & Kearney, P. (1996). Clarifying the relationship between teacher
nonverbal immediacy and student cognitive learning: Affective learning as the central
causal mediator. Communication education, 45(4), 293-305.
Walker, J. A., Gran, C. F., & Curiel, A. (2005). Shaping ethics: Youth workers matter. New
directions for youth development, 2005(108), 19-30.

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