The James. P. Shannon Institute is designed for leaders who have a commitment to public and community service. Shannon participants are not from a single career stage nor positional level. They represent a diverse group of leaders with many different kinds of leadership experiences, through both paid work (careers) as well as unpaid and/or community work.

Participants come from all walks of life:

• nonprofit and philanthropy

• civic and government

• health and business

• arts, environment, and education

Regardless of their background, all want the opportunity for personal and professional renewal so as to improve the creativity, energy, and effectiveness of their work.

Affectionately known as “The Shannon,” being a “Shannonista” provides you a Leadership Journey of Discovery, Growth, and Challenge. The Shannon Institute experience is designed to enhance the energy, focus and effectiveness of participants. We nurture the creativity and vitality of community-serving leaders from all sectors.

Effective leaders have a strong sense of purpose and an understanding of their core values. The program provides a structured, challenging, and supportive environment for experienced community leaders to clarify the purpose of their work and the core values they want that work to exemplify. The result that the Institute achieves is purposeful and effective leadership with a renewed commitment to public and community service.

Applications for the 2025 cohort year have been closed. Stay tuned for applications for 2026!

Join us for a virtual information session to hear from facilitators and program alumni about the Shannon Leadership Institute. Information sessions regarding the 2026 program year are TBD.

Participants go through the Shannon Leadership Institute as a part of a cohort of approximately twenty people. Each group stays together for the full length of the program, allowing relationships between members to deepen over time.

Cohorts are intentionally diverse in terms of background, experience, race, culture, gender and discipline. Participants come from philanthropy, arts, health, environment, education, government and business. Participants benefit from the diversity of perspectives and experiences that their cohorts offer as much as they do from the deep work of personal reflection and development.

Each cohort is served by an experienced facilitator who works with the group throughout the Institute year. As needed, additional faculty may join the group to assist with particular program elements. The creative programming is designed to stimulate growth and learning, providing opportunities for both shared experience and individual reflection.

Experiential Learning:

The Shannon Institute provides each cohort with a multitude of experiences to stimulate reflection, understanding and growth. Participants share in a variety of activities such as canoeing, mask-making, and orienteering as ways to explore ideas such as risk-taking and courage, values clarification, balance and generosity.

A Variety of Program Settings:

Shannon cohorts spend time together away from their daily routines, giving them space and time to focus on themselves, their values, and their goals. The schedule of gatherings and the variety of contexts in which they take place give participants the time and space they need to address their own leadership skills, styles and aspirations.

Option 1: Monthly In-Person Sessions:

Our in-person cohort begins and ends with overnight retreats. In between, the cohort meets monthly on Thursday evenings from 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. and Fridays from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at various locations throughout the Twin Cities. This cohort is designed for participants living or working in the Twin Cities.

Option 2: Monthly Hybrid Sessions (both In-Person and Virtual):

Our hybrid cohort includes three overnight, in-person retreats and additional virtual sessions in between retreats. This cohort is open to participants from all locations, Twin Cities and otherwise.

Our in-person cohort begins and ends with overnight retreats. In between, the cohort meets monthly on Thursday evenings from 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. and Fridays from 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. at various locations throughout the Twin Cities.

Our hybrid cohort includes three overnight, in-person retreats and additional virtual sessions in between retreats.

Cohort schedules for the 2025 program year can be found here:https://www.shannoninstitute.com/2025-cohort-schedules

The full cost of participation is $3,000. Your tuition covers room and board during overnight retreats, meals during all in-person sessions, and all facilitator-provided materials.

Your initial deposit of $500 will hold your spot in your cohort and is non-refundable. It is later applied to the $3,000 balance.

Program participants may utilize personal funds, professional development funds, or a combination of both for their tuition payments.

Payments can be submitted electronically on your cohort’s Tuition Payment page (please note that the 2025 page is not yet live). Our Program Coordinator can provide additional assistance for specialized payment amounts or for professional development payments requiring an invoice.

The Shannon Leadership Institute offers the following payment plan options:

Pay in Full: Pay the full cost of your program tuition all at once.

Double payments: Pay 50% of your program tuition in March and 50% in July of your program year.

Quarterly Installments: Pay your tuition in February, April, July, and October of your program year.

Following notification of your acceptance to the program, a non-refundable deposit of $500 is paid to hold your spot in your cohort. (This amount is later applied to your $3,000 tuition balance.)

Once accepted to the program, you will be invited to submit an enrollment form, through which you will identify the payment plan of your choice. Your chosen payment plan will determine your payment schedule. Please see the “How do I pay my program tuition?” FAQ for the list of payment plan options.

YES!

We need you to nominate incredible people to help us expand our beloved network of participants and alumni.

Applications for the 2025 program year are now closed. However, we are always seeking new leaders who are ready for this profound experience!

Submit your nominations here: https://www.shannoninstitute.com/nominations

It’s important to note, however, that someone does not need to be nominated in order to apply to our program. Nominations are just another way that we can find wonderful, future Shannonistas!