Two Kiwanians stand as examples of the program’s impact on personal and professional leadership.
By Tony Knoderer
In 2025, Kiwanis International will again offer Kiwanis Amplify — a leadership program for those who want to improve their ability to lead a team within Kiwanis and beyond. Registration will open in January. Kiwanis Amplify is an online course featuring interactive modules led by experts, with peer discussion that helps participants enhance each other’s understanding
Participants will take a deep dive into eight topics:
- Leadership.
- Communication.
- Event planning.
- Diversity, equity and inclusion.
- Working with others.
- Marketing.
- Strategic thinking.
- Self-care as a leader.
Participants can work through the course at their own pace to earn a certificate of completion.
Two members at a crossroads
When Kiwanis Amplify launched in 2021, two Kiwanians — Angelo Ciardella and Cynthia Blackman — were at a crossroads. Blackman was adjusting to service as her division’s lieutenant governor during the COVID-19 pandemic, and Ciardella was completing his nursing degree. Both found what they were looking for in the inaugural Kiwanis Amplify class.
Ciardella, current lieutenant governor of Division 3 of the Eastern Canada and the Caribbean District, was impressed with the quality of the training material, but also with the depth and breadth of the topics.
“I absolutely loved that the trainings did not focus on Kiwanis at all,” he says, “[but] rather the themes and skills needed to be a successful leader in life, which translate to our service journeys in Kiwanis.”
Blackman, now governor-elect of the Eastern Canada and the Caribbean District, says the program “forced me to re-evaluate my perspective on being intentional with inclusive leadership and not being afraid to fail as a leader.”
The skills that resonated most with Ciardella and Blackman were those they could apply to their personal growth.
“Being given permission to fail was something that I needed to hear so badly at that time in my life,” Ciardella says. “The rigors of university, moving up in leadership in my club and that little thing called the pandemic were really causing me to be down on myself.”
For Blackman, self-care was the big takeaway. “Oftentimes as a leader,” she says, “we place others before ourselves.”
Professional impact
Ciardella and Blackman found that Kiwanis Amplify helped their careers. Ciardella partially attributes his job as a nurse at one of North America’s leading hospitals to Kiwanis Amplify.
“The program helped me hone my leadership and communication skills, setting me above others in my industry,” he says. “Teamwork, communication, DEI, strategic thinking — these themes are so relevant in my work, and Kiwanis Amplify has helped me excel in these areas.”
For Blackman, the program was a guide toward greater effectiveness in giving presentations — and in engaging with large groups of all kinds.
“Kiwanis Amplify gave me the tools to adjust my leadership style at the office to one where I was more inspirational,” she says. “The [communication] module enhanced my presentation style and instilled confidence in me that allowed me to engage with various audiences actively and effectively.”
Blackman found that her communication style was also improved, helping her become more conscious about her choice of words. Ultimately, she found the program so useful that she participated again in 2024. After the success that resulted from participating in the 2021 program, Ciardella got involved with shaping it and helping others. He joined a Kiwanis-led committee to make suggestions for Kiwanis Amplify’s second year, and he served as a program mentor in its third year.
“These experiences have been some of the highlights of my Kiwanis journey,” he says.
Get ready to register
To learn more, visit the Kiwanis Amplify webpage. And bookmark the page so you can sign up when the registration period begins in January. We encourage you to spread the word in the meantime: Kiwanis Amplify is available both to Kiwanis members and nonmembers (US$50 for Kiwanis members, US$600 for nonmembers). For everyone who participates, it’s an opportunity to improve your career, your community and yourself.