The Legacy Leadership Project: Another Successful Summer Community of Practice (CoP) Concludes
Each summer, we bring together leaders and partners in what we call a Community of Practice. These gatherings are part learning space, part laboratory, and part circle of support. They create room for participants to share knowledge, test new ideas, and strengthen their leadership alongside peers.
At The SageD Collective, we design Communities of Practice to be co-created rather than top-down. Everyone contributes expertise and perspective, and the collective wisdom that emerges is stronger than any single voice. What begins as a series of sessions grows into a network of relationships that carries forward long after the season concludes.
“The best way to learn is simply (and profoundly) being in the presence of one who is demonstrating/living what they want you to learn.”
-Leslie Quigless, 2025 Cohort Participant
This summer’s series highlighted just how powerful that approach can be. Each facilitator brought forward practices and insights that sparked reflection, encouraged collaboration, and reinforced the value of building together.
Session Highlights
Sagdrina Brown Jalal, The SageD Collective
In the opening session, Sagdrina set the tone by naming the distinction between a consulting firm and a Collective: one delivers outcomes, the other builds shared responsibility. The summer series invited the Executives to approach leadership as a practice of reflection and co-creation. Readings from Mia Birdsong, adrienne maree brown, and Octavia Butler sparked conversation about values and habits in leadership. Sagdrina also introduced tools such as Tricia Hersey’s Nap Ministry Rest Deck and Cole Arthur Riley’s Black Liturgies to highlight the link between individual care and collective impact, while also grounding participants with practical business resources like the business canvas and readiness assessments.
Lita Hooper, My Learning Pro
Session two, led by Lita Hooper, reframed pitching as more than securing funding for your initiatives. The Executives examined how storytelling communicates solutions, reduces risk for funders, and builds stronger partnerships. Together, the group reflected on how shared expertise and community knowledge align to meet different ways of learning, whether visual, analytical, or experiential, broadening the pathways for collaboration.
Latasia Cox, FrameWork Marketing Consulting
In session three, brand strategist Latasia Cox invited the Executives to consider branding as an act of remembering, rather than creating. Through conversation and exercises, the Executives explored how authenticity in presence, message, and connection builds trust. The atmosphere of ease—seen in laughter, comfort, and openness—underscored the idea that leadership is not diminished by realness but strengthened by it. The session affirmed that alignment between presence and message is not a one-time achievement, but a daily practice that serves the wider Collective.
Siha Collins, Yellow Mat Wellness Collective
In a masterclass on Vision, Values, and Beliefs, Siha Collins guided the Executives through reflective storytelling to reconnect with their purpose. This session emphasized how revisiting origins, clarifying current values, and recognizing the legacies being shaped in real time all contribute to building enterprises rooted in community care. The process illuminated how strong businesses grow when their values are lived out in relationship with those they serve.
Carline Hooker, NetworkIT Coaching
The series continued with Carline Hooker leading a discussion on reclaiming unstructured time as a tool for collaboration. The Executives explored how space for genuine connection leads to stronger partnerships and unexpected opportunities. The conversation underscored how trust, empathy, and affirmation are not “extras” in leadership; they are essential ingredients for sustaining business goals and collective growth.
Karla Blaginin, Pickleball and Movement Facilitator
In her session, Karla Blaginin invited participants to reconnect with joy and pleasure through movement, drawing on her expertise in both Zumba and Pickleball. As a certified instructor and movement consultant, she guided the group to focus less on performance and more on presence, rhythm, and connection. The experience blended fun with intention, reminding Executives that play can be a powerful tool for leadership. By the close of the session, everyone left energized and mindful, carrying forward the lesson that how we move shapes how we lead.
This summer’s Community of Practice affirmed that when leaders gather to share knowledge, test ideas, and reflect together, the impact reaches far beyond the room. The sessions reminded us that building strong communities requires both intentional structure and open space for connection and that leadership is most powerful when practiced together.
