Student SenateA look at leadership…

Kirstie Colin

Reid McCormick

Whitney Marlatt

Case StudyAs the new Coordinator of Leadership

Development in the Office of Student Activities, the key component of your new job is to advise Student Senate and to teach a new two unit leadership class. In the past two years, Student Senate has been plagued with infighting, nepotism and gridlock. There have been many complaints that student Senate has mismanaged funds and have not served the needs of students.

Theoretical Basis: Leadership Identity Development Model

based on the study of Komives, Longerbeam, Owen, Mainella, Osteen

Stages of Development1. Awareness: Students are aware that there is leadership2. Exploration/Engagement: They Begin to interact with peers,

developing relational skills3. Leader identified: leadership is a position- only the person in

this position is the leader4. Leader differentiated: Begin to understand different views

about leadership 5. Generativity: Students show the ability to look beyond

themselves, express passion for their commitments and the welfare of others

6. Integration/Synthesis: Students have confidence working with others in almost any context

Theoretical Application5 Categories that influenced the development of a leadership identity :

– Broadening view of leadership: students views changed from perceiving leadership as the external other, as positional and then as non-positional

– Developing self: deepening self-awareness, building self-confidence, establishing interpersonal efficacy, applying new skills and expanding motivations

– Group influences: includes engaging in groups, learning from membership continuity, and changing perceptions of groups

– Developmental influences that facilitate the development of a leadership identity: adult influences, peer influences, meaningful involvements, and reflective learning

– Changing view of self with others: being dependent, independent or dependent or interdependent

Mission Statement

• Office of Student Activities Department of Leadership Programs exists to support students into greater levels of understanding and personal development through transformative experiences in effective leadership

Assessment

One of the main methods of assessment will be an instrument developed to assess :

• Knowledge the students have about leadership

• Do they know their own leadership styles?• Do they have faith in their ability to create

change?• Level of respect they currently hold for the

position they hold, as well as for the other leaders in their groups

Learning Outcomes• Students will be able to

identify characteristics of effective leadership

• Students will identify their personal leadership style and understand how to apply it to their current leadership position

• Students will understand and appreciate the differences in leadership styles of other leaders

• Students will demonstrate how to communicate effectively in their groups and learn how to handle conflict

• Students will learn how the experience can translate to success in their careers after college

• Students will assess how they are spending money and learn how to work within their own budget

• Help student identify the significance of ethics and civic engagement in leadership

Program Design

Three Prong Approach

1. Retreat

2. Leadership Class

3. On-going training sessions

Retreat

Purpose: to promote team building skills and discussion on leadership

Learning Outcomes:• Develop team building skills that promotes

appreciation for diversity and unity among the members of the senate

• Define the role of integrity in a leadership position

• Create a vision for the coming year

RetreatEvent: take the students on a short weekend retreat that

encourages them to interact with each other, and develop relationships

Activities:• Provide several fun activities that encourages students to

interact, challenge and trust each other in order to promote unity• Organize several discussions that address the elements of

leadership • Time for personal reflection• Create a unified vision for the coming year

– What are the issues?– Where are the issues?– How do we handle these issues?

Leadership 101• Purpose: to provide structured learning

experience in which to address some of the underlying causes of problems in the senate ( in-fighting, nepotism, mismanagement of funds).

• In this 2 unit class students will :– Be able to express their personal style of leadership– Gain a greater appreciation for the roles that they

are in– Learn how to transfer these experiences to life after

their term as student leader

.

Leadership 101Course Outline

Unit One:What is a leader?

• Self Assessment

• Concepts of leadership

• Guest speakers from other student leaders past and present who have positively demonstrated relational leaders

Unit Two:Myself as a leader

• Leadership styles

• Communication

• Motivation

• Finding a sense of purpose

Unit Three: Leadership Skills• Teamwork• Time Management• Meetings and presentations• Evaluate your performance as a

leaderUnit Four: The BIG Picture• Transition: applying what has been

learned• Leadership skills in career• Reflections• FinalAssignments will include :• Interviews• Reflective essays at the end of each

unit• Group discussions and

presentations

On-going presentation• During the weekly meetings students will work together as a team to

talk about this these sample topics. • Will be more specifically related to jobs and events that are taking place

within the Senate• Continual education of on-going presentations take place at the

beginning of Student Senate meeting weekly• Suggested Sample Topics

Programming Events (Educational experiences and activities) Budgeting and Check Request Time Management Communication/conflict management Trust Activities

• Students will gain a deeper understanding of how these topic relate specifically to civic engagement

Program Evaluation

Methods:

• Survey the students in leadership class ( post-test) in order to assess what the students have learned. Has there been any change in attitude?

Questions?

References• Clifton, D.W., Anderson, E., & Shriner,L.

(2006).Strengthsquest: Discover and develop your strengths in academics, career and beyond. NY: Gallup Press.

• Komives, S.R., Longerbeam, S.D., Owen, J.E., Mainella, F.C., Osteen L.(2006) “A Leadership Identity Development Model: Applications from a Grounded Theory”. Journal of College Student Development, vol 47,pp 401-418

• The Art and Science of leadership- http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/leader/leadtrn.html