Allison Leigh

Background

About Allison Leigh

When I am creating content to present and teach, I always imagine a hostile audience. For most of my career, the presentations, events, retreats, workshops, and talks I have given have mixed audiences-some that are required to be in the room and some that chose to be. The question I ask myself is "how can I make them want to come?""How can I make them excited to be here, even the biggest doubter in the room?" I am driven by figuring out how I can make material interesting, accessible and fun. Whether it is the current work I do with faculty and staff around mission and identity at a Catholic and Marianist University, or the dozens of workshops I have led on the Enneagram assessment tool, or even sharing my passion for traveling to see the amazing birds of the world, I want people gathered to have a great time, learn something, and leave wanting more. So you will never see boring slides from me or a presentation that goes over the time allotment. I know how to build in breaks, and make workshops interactive. My background in art, and the work I have done in graphic design, along with my studies of adult learning and pedagogy mean I know how to prioritize information, and tell a story in words and images in a method appropriate for my audience. I am comfortable writing clearly and quickly, and my dissertation gave me lots of practice in receiving constructive feedback. I love a good metaphor, a good story, and a good question prompt. When I am not dreaming up new programs and initiatives in my work, I am traveling the world adding to my life list of birds I have seen (currently over 800), trying to get amazing photos of these birds, and learning as much as I can about the habitat, culture, and food of each place I visit. I may always imagine a hostile audience, but in all my years, and in all the places I have been, I have yet to encounter one.