Learning to SOAR:
CHRIST Leadership Hub Launches
First Hybrid Leadership Journey

Established by the United Board in 2023 at CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Kengeri Campus, Bangalore, India, the CHRIST University Higher Education Leadership Institute (CUHELI) is one of two United Board Leadership Hubs in Asia (the other is hosted at Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines). It has since built a steady calendar of programs for faculty at early, mid- and senior career stages.

“SOAR” (short for “Strategic Orientation for Academic Resilience”) is CUHELI's first hybrid program: a five-month journey combining residential sessions at Kengeri with online learning in between, designed for high-potential faculty in early-career roles and intended to encourage more of them to step towards leadership early rather than late. Forty-three participants from 16 higher education institutions across India, identified by their own institutions to have leadership potential, were nominated to take part in the journey.

The program opened on July 16 with a virtual session on the importance of culture in institution building, led by United Board President Dr. Pareena Gupta Lawrence. Participants then gathered at Kengeri on August 18–19 for the first two-day residential, covering understanding one's own strengths, psychological safety in academia, building working relationships, and leading within an academic ecosystem.

SOAR continues with virtual sessions on Saturdays through September and October, with more United Board involvement with Dr. Anita Tiphagne speaking on student engagement and institutional brand (September 12) and Dr. Jakarin Srimoon on leading in a new education landscape in Asia (October 10).

The program has also committed in advance to being measured, with follow-up at one and three months, and conversations with participants' heads of department at six months to ask what has visibly changed.

Mr. John K. John, director of CUHELI, was already looking ahead when he said, “As of now SOAR is only available for those academics based in India. We may see later on if it could be customized for an international audience.”