The American educator and philosopher John Dewey is often credited with the saying, “We do not learn from an experience; we learn from reflecting on an experience.” In their Second Year, Witt Fellows reflect on their recent Black Belt Experience and use it as a prism through which they are better able to see many angles of themselves as leaders and as citizens. 

In this Second Year experience, Witt Fellows begin incorporating the skills and wisdom gained from their engagement in the Alabama Black Belt Region into their own leadership competencies and philosophies. Fellows are expected not only to reflect meaningfully on their actions in the Black Belt, but also to begin articulating their individual understandings of leadership, scholarship and citizenship—the three pillars of the Witt Fellows Program. 

Socrates stated, “To know thyself is the beginning of wisdom.” In that spirit, Second Year Fellows begin by reflecting on questions such as, What can our shared experience as a cohort tell us about…

• Ourselves as individuals?
• Our leadership styles?
• Our personality traits?
• Our values systems and motivations?
• Our sense of purpose and belonging?  

In the spring of their Second Year, Fellows shift their focus from the “me” to the “we”—from knowing ourselves as leaders to serving our communities as citizens. As these Fellows move forward into their Third Year Magnum Opus Experience, their focus will in turn shift to developing as scholars. 

The Leadership Development Experience gives cohorts of Witt Fellows an opportunity to enter as a group united by their adventures in Perry County, Alabama and proceed forward as a group of leaders with deep understandings of themselves and their civic responsibilities.