First Cohort of Billions Institute Fellows, September 2017
The Billions Institute Fellowship is a two-year community of practice for social change leaders designed to strengthen your ability to lead large-scale change in your sector. Over a series of six in-person retreats, Fellows are supported in doing to the inner-work and inter-personal work that forms a solid foundation for being able to create massive transformation of the planet without burning out.
Fellows will pursue three shared goals:
- Measurably advance your ability to lead transformation on the issue you care about the most
- Self-actualization i.e. realize your fullest potential as a human being
- Mutual liberation i.e. fully recognize that your liberation is bound up with others and align your actions accordingly
How it works: Fellows will gather for six three-day retreats over a two-year period, eighteen days total. Each of the six retreats will include sessions with experts, personal transformation coaches, experiential site visits when appropriate, and peer facilitation. The retreats will take place in Becky & Christine’s home in Claremont, California.
Between the retreats, fellows will apply what they’ve learned in their own scaling efforts. There is a rolling 24 month curriculum that is offered through a monthly webinar and build upon the work we do in person. Once a month, fellows have the opportunity to receive coaching from their facilitators and their peers on a zoom call. Additionally, fellows will be paired up as accountability buddies to support ongoing integration and application of the material. Fellows will have 24/7 access to faculty and one another through a private message board.
Warning: This is a radically different kind of group that is deeply personal and relational. The Billions Institute will curate and facilitate, but not hand-hold. We envision this group as being a lived experience of the principles that inform the Model for Unleashing.
The ground we will cover will be deeply personal. You will have the opportunity to discover and change unconscious habits that hold you back and sometimes that generates resistance. The fellowship will challenge you to update your core operating system and unconscious assumptions about how you want to show up as a person and as a leader.
Faculty Team: While Becky Margiotta is the primary facilitator, she has formed a unique faculty team to support the fellows. Christine Margiotta, in addition to being Becky’s amazing wife, brings a wealth of experience in public narrative, organizing, philanthropy, social justice, and large-scale systems change. Mike Thompson brings decades of experience in leading national, state and community-level LGBTQ advocacy efforts and organizations. Nicole Taylor, author of A Joyful Pause, blends her expertise in Ayurvedic Medicine, Yoga, and consciousness skills in service of self-care. Leslie Chertok is an entrepreneur and skilled trauma therapist. Susan Jane brings decades of experience as an educator on race, racial representation, diversity, inclusion, popular culture, and media studies. Together we weave a web of love and support around the fellows and create a context for deep personal transformation along with powerful professional growth. We love working together and it shines through in everything we do.
Current Fellows: There are currently 12 fellows and we will never allow the group to grow larger than 30 so that we can maintain close relationships. They are each and every one extraordinary. Check them out here.
Graduation requirements:
- Actively participate in the in-person meetings, monthly virtual meetings, accountability buddy calls, and the message board.
- Serve as a “table facilitator” for at least one Skid Row School during the two-year period, coaching and mentoring a small group for the duration of the four-day training.
- Briefly mentor one new fellow.
- Receive recommendation from three peers on your graduation committee.
After graduation, fellows are considered members of the fellowship for life. Our vision is that the community we create together will become your home base forever, a safe refuge in the uncertain and chaotic experience of leading large-scale change, and the kick in the butt, too, if that’s what’s needed.
Cost: $6,000 per year, with the first year invoiced upon acceptance into the program and the second year invoiced at your one-year anniversary. This does not include travel, lodging, or meals. Scholarships are available based on need. If this speaks to you, please do not let the cost stop you from applying.
To Apply: On a rolling basis, we will admit 4 new fellows at each retreat. Applications are available here.
Fellows will be selected to include leaders working on a diversity of issues and to optimize the representational equity of the cohort. We are committed to ensuring that the cohort is comprised of at least 30% people who identify as people of color. We encourage leaders working on racial and social justice, climate change, education, anti-violence, and lack of access to essential needs and services to apply.
Minimum requirements to apply:
- Graduate of the Skid Row School or Introduction to Unleashing
- Actively engaged in funding and/or leading large-scale change
- Willing to actively engage in deeply personal transformation work with a peer group
We will make admissions decisions on a rolling basis, generally within a few days of receiving your application. If you are interested, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Becky becky@billionsinstitute.com to discuss further.