Radical Honesty Institute Update - Sept./Oct. 2023
Dear Radical Honesty Community,
Over the last few months, the owners have been meeting regularly to address the direction and future of the Radical Honesty Institute. We hear your requests wanting more information about what the Institute is doing and this update is one of the ways we will ongoingly share what we are working on behind the scenes.
Owner's Circle
In the summer, we had three owners leave RHI as well as the acting managing director. The current Owner's Circle now has 7 members. We have received outside support from an organizational consultant to process and work through differences.
In May 2023, a petition was addressed to RHI (see more information below). The Owners are committed to addressing the concerns of the Petition, but it will take time, and what follows is a description of our steps in that direction.
Organizational Circles
RHI has created a number of circles to address different spheres of the organization. The current circles are:
1. Owners
2. Administration (including Finances, Marketing, and Staff)
3. Accountability
4. Ethics
5. Trainer Community
6. Training Program
Circles have a Steward or Co-stewards who take responsibility for the Circle and invite others to join. Circles aspire to have a balance of Trainers, TCs, owners, and on occasion, interested community members. Some Circles may be staffed or led by people from outside of RH, when appropriate.
Invitations to various individuals will happen over the next few months. All Circles are both important decision-making bodies and spheres of learning for those who are involved (see more information about the Accountability and Ethics Circles below).
If you are interested in joining one of the Circles, contact support@radicalhonesty.com
Current Circle Stewards
1. Administration (including Finances, Staff): Gudrun Graichen, Michael Alan Kolb, and Jesper Jurcenoks
2. Accountability: Interim Stewards: Kerri Timar, Maggie Doyle, Michael Alan Kolb, John Rosania
3. Ethics: Still developing
4. Trainer Community: Still developing
5. Trainer Program: Michael Alan Kolb, Selina Jung, and John Rosania
RHI has hired Jesper Jurcenoks for a trial period to improve and develop the business and marketing spheres of the Institute. In addition, Kerri Timar has been brought on to steward the development of the Accountability Circle. She lives in Detroit, works as a freelance consultant regarding organizational systems and conflict resolution and has a background in non-profits and schools.
We’ll have both Kerri and Jesper introduce themselves once they have gotten started. RHI is very excited to have them on board!
Highlight: Accountability and Ethics Circles
The Accountability Circle addresses issues of conduct by Trainers and Trainer Candidates. The guidelines for this conduct were originally developed in the Trainer Sexual Conduct Agreements. In response to feedback and criticism regarding cultish practices, high-pressure containers, high-control environments, weaponizing of Radical Honesty ideas and practices, power dynamics, unskillful teaching in Trainer's Trainings, and dual relationships, broader ethical guidelines are being developed by the Ethics Circle.
Again, we’ve hired Kerri Timar to steward the Accountability Circle and we are in conversation with outside organizations to support the accountability and ethics processes.
The Support Circle
For the last two years, the intention of the Support Circle was to create a supportive place to work out challenging issues face-to-face using what we had learned in Radical Honesty workshops. Many of these conversations were useful and many were not. Many of the issues were complicated and needed more care than the organization had resources for. And some were facilitated unskillfully.
We have stopped the Support Circle and are no longer providing ongoing support for clearing conversations, discussions of attraction, and grievances in this format.
All grievances related to Trainers & TC’s leading workshops and courses can be sent to the Accountability Circle. (accountability-circle@radicalhonesty.com)
Training Programs and Training Path
In the Spring, RHI stopped all Training Programs and Trainer's Trainings in response to important feedback from the trainee community. For the moment, RHI is not accepting new trainees. RHI has convened a Training Circle to consider next steps and to support current Trainer Candidates. This month, the Training Circle met with current Trainer Candidates and students to discuss possible paths forward. Gathering feedback from trainees and students was the first step. The Training Program Circle is considering various options and will present a plan in the coming months.
The Petition
The petition written to RHI brought to the surface important issues in the Radical Honesty Community specifically and the broader culture of organizations more generally. The Ethics Circle is developing an Ethical Guidelines document for Trainers and Trainer Candidates that will attempt to address much of what was made visible in the Petition.
Once the Ethical Guidelines draft is completed, Trainers and Trainer Candidates will be asked to agree to them. Since documents can remain merely words on a page and easily forgotten, the Ethics Circle will develop ways to keep the Guidelines alive (perhaps through on-going discussion, yearly workshops, continuing education, etc.).
Sincerely,
Mak, Maggie, Christoph, John, Selina, Marvin, and Gudrun
Radical Honesty Institute