Susan Wells, at the urging of Windcall Residents, wrote a book, Changing Course: Windcall and the Art of Renewal, which tells the story of the first seventeen years of Windcall and the organizers who were transformed by it.
The practice and policy of taking a sabbatical slowly took hold. The Windcall Residency established a new model that convinced organizers to take a sabbatical for the first time. Initially, movement folks were resistant to the idea of taking time off and organizations did not have the resources or the culture of instituting sabbatical policies. …
The program soon proved to be transformative for organizer after organizer – far beyond the expectations of the Wells’ and the social change leaders serving on the Windcall Selection Committee. With feedback from Windcall alumni, Susan’s background in psychology, and staffer Joy Sue Hutchinson’ experience as a community organizer with Association of Community Organizations for Reform …
Windcall was the first program of its kind for social justice organizers and leaders. It stood out for its prioritization of organizers, both community and labor organizers; its national scope, including in regions where organizers have few leadership opportunities and great challenges in organizing for social change; and eventually honing its focus on organizers of …
The first Resident was Anthony Thigpenn of SCOPE / AGENDA in Los Angeles.
Windcall was founded in 1989 by long-time social justice funders Albert and Susan Wells (Abelard Foundation of the Common Counsel Foundation) and housed at their ranch in Montana. They were spurred by having met many organizers who were exhausted, or who had left the field prematurely due to burnout or because of coming to a …