Leading Words ~ A Letter From The Director

The Fall Semester has begun and excitement is in the air. The football season is in full swing and student schedules, curricular and extracurricular, are full. It is also an exciting time to be a part of the Institute for Leadership Advancement at the University of Georgia.

Joining the staff of the ILA this summer was a journey filled with feelings of humility and excitement for me. I am humbled to join an organization that has done so much in its short history and to lead the team that makes it all happen. Chris Cornwell did a great job last year as Interim ILA Director and continues to lead the Leonard Leadership Scholars Program.

But I'm also excited to think about the work ahead of us. For all that we have accomplished through the ILA, I believe there is much more to come. This is an exciting place to be and I'm looking forward to the impact on the next generation of leaders.

Interestingly, after accepting the role, several people asked me why I wanted to go work at a university doing leadership development. The conversations that ensued from the initial questions spoke to two deeper questions that I'd like to address here.

#1 - Can leaders really be developed?

The on-going debate is whether leaders are born with the innate qualities to lead or they develop them. For me it is a moot point. If leaders are born, we do not have a consistently valid instrument for accessing the leadership disposition. Currently, we cannot guess with absolute certainty who will lead and in what situation they will exert their influence. Thus, my desire is to expose every student we can to experiences that help to develop effective leadership skills. Leaders can be developed. We can help them gain the tools of business acumen, self-awareness, communication, empathy and vision that contribute to organizational success.

#2 - What does it mean to "create a new class of leaders"?

The simple answer is that we are helping students develop skills that will accelerate their advancement in organizational leadership. On this level, the class created helps solve succession challenges in today's organizations. But, we believe our work is deeper and more impactful than just an organizational replacement strategy. The ILA's charter aims to create leaders who will lead differently. We are part of a larger movement that encourages leaders to gain deeper awareness of themselves and lead from a values-based position that considers the complexity of leadership decisions throughout the organization, not just on the bottom line.

I'm thrilled to join a community of supporters -- the Terry College faculty, our corporate partners, donors and friends -- who teach, mentor and give to make our programs effective. Ultimately, we want to touch every Terry College student with leadership development experiences and we are beginning to plan for this goal.

In the end, we are creating leaders who will improve their organizations and communities. They will produce results with integrity. They will make a difference. That's our mission.

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Dr. Clawson's Role Expands

Throughout life there are teachers that challenge us. They sharpen our skills and help us rise to our best. To many ILA students Dr. Vikki Clawson has been that teacher. She challenges students, not only mentally in the classroom but also physically at the UGA Ropes Course. She helps them discover their skills and use them to the fullest extent. Now the ILA will be utilizing her skills to a fuller extent.

Formerly a part-time instructor for ILA courses, Dr. Clawson has accepted an expanded role this fall. In her new capacity, Vikki is teaching all three sections of ILAD 4100, Personal Leadership. In addition to her ILA duties, she also serves as an Executive Coach in the Terry College MBA programs and is VP of Bostrom and Associates, an Athens-based training and consulting company focused on facilitation, leadership and effective integration of people and technology. Even with such a full schedule Dr. Clawson takes the time to build a relationship with each of her students. She guides them through the process of greater self-awareness and a plan for life-long self-development.

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Edge of the Action ~ Activities & Events

The ILA schedule is full of opportunities for leadership development. A few of the highlights include:

September 23 - ILA Tailgate

Nearly 300 students, parents, alumni, faculty, donors and friends of the ILA gathered on the Brooks Hall lawn September 23 for the Tailgate. This annual event provides a great opportunity for alumni to reconnect with former classmates, for current students and their parents to meet our faculty and for us to thank all who make the ILA programs possible. In addition, it was a great opportunity to introduce our new director to Bulldawg football and tailgating, UGA style. Click here to check out photos from the tailgate and other past events!

October 4 - Executive Speaker Series ~ Jim Winestock, SVP US Operations, UPS

In the tradition of bringing outstanding corporate executives to campus to share their learning and experiences, the ILA will host Jim Winestock from UPS on Wednesday, October 4, at 5:00 p.m. in the Student Learning Center, room 171. As Senior Vice President of US Operations, Winestock is responsible for the pick up and delivery of more than 14.1 million packages each day and 384,000 employees. A 37 year veteran at UPS, Winestock's career has many lessons for students of leadership.

November 6 - Scholars to Visit Chick-fil-A

Executives at Chick-fil-A will host the Leonard Leadership Scholars for a visit of their corporate headquarters. This opportunity will give students an inside look at this company widely recognized for its values-based leadership practices.

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To the Edge of the Earth ~ Summer Experiences Expand Global Perspectives

For UGA undergraduates it has become increasingly common to study and travel abroad at some point during their time in Athens. Our Leonard Leadership Scholars contribute to this trend, seeking experiences that will expand their global perspectives and increase their effectiveness working across national, ethnic and cultural lines. This past summer you could find our students in programs all over Europe and China.

Dave Hanson (Class of 2008) was one of them. In May, UGA's Redcoat Band made an unprecedented trip to China, performing before a wide variety of audiences over the course of two and a half weeks. Dave is the Drum Major and he was certainly stretched by the challenge of leading the Redcoats in a different cultural context, not to mention his first experience with Chinese toilets. The trip produced a lifetime of memories and more than a few serious reflections. "I guess the one thing I could say about the China trip is that growing up, I always heard my parents say how lucky I was to have been born in America, but I never really understood what they meant until this summer when I went to China," says Dave. "It was the first time I had ever traveled outside of the United States. It was life changing to see the disparity between the rich (mostly governmental workers) and the poor (everyone else)."

Courtney Doran (Class of 2007) was another. A recipient of a study-abroad grant funded by Mr. Leonard, she started out her summer in Valencia studying Spanish at Enforex University. After five weeks of studying Spanish, Courtney set out on a multi-week tour of Europe. To hear Courtney recount her experiences, you get the impression that her summer was transformational. As she puts it, "When I left the states two months ago, I was nervous about my course, awkward when others spoke different languages around me and I didn't have the confidence to navigate the world alone. All that's changed, I've changed. Diversity is the richness that makes the world an interesting place to be, and I am grateful for the people who challenge me to constantly redefine my thinking." She continues, "I felt it deep in my soul that this was my time, my time for growth, for discovery, and my time to be challenged. As we explored the cities of the world, we were diligently looking to have the most authentic experience in each place. We were striving to walk away from each city with a new understanding of their culture and we were satisfied with the uncertainty that greeted us everyday."

Courtney also developed a new appreciation for flexibility and adaptability. "I would have thought living without A/C in 40°C (104°F) weather, taking cold showers, having no phone, hair dryer, DVD player, no one around me from my country, would be borderline miserable, but I learned new chants, rejoiced in the coolness of the shower water, used my imagination for entertainment, and let my beauty be shown through my confidence and conversation." More fundamentally, Courtney found that she "loved scraping off the excess and finding what [she] was really made of." Summing up her experience, she says, "Whenever something spectacular has happened to you, whenever you have had an adventure, the end of it only means the beginning of another, often times more difficult [adventure] because you now have a responsibility to take what you learned and experienced and use it to help the world and better yourself."

We agree. For Leonard Leadership Scholars like Dave and Courtney, studying and traveling abroad is not just about the destinations, it is about how you are changed by them, and how you will better serve others as a result.

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Meet the Scholars

is a website designed for all scholars that contains contact info, a database of past internships, a calendar for the program, a listserv, and a weekly update as well as links to many forms, awards and opportunities for scholars. Recently we've made the scholar photos and bios public for all to browse, so feel free to click this logo anywhere you see it on our site and read about our scholars here: https://inside.terry.uga.edu/leadership/my_ila/scholars/directory/.

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Living on the Edge ~ L.E.A.D. Students Expand Their Horizons

Internships are a valuable part of the undergraduate education experience. By assuring a short-term assignment related to their major or desired career choice, a student gains first-hand experiences that cannot be simulated in the classroom. Two L.E.A.D. students learned much from their experiences this summer.

Leleah Robinson, a senior at UGA, interned at the Executive Office of Bad Boy Entertaiment in New York City. Bad Boy Entertainment is the company founded by hip hop mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs. Working directly with the Chief of Staff, and various top executives of his company, proved to be a great learning experience for Leleah. Everyday she exercised her skills of multi-tasking, time management, and taking the initiative to complete high importance tasks without much guidance. She also said one of the most important parts of her experience was learning to take calculated risks. As a double major in Publication Management and Sociology, she plans to use these essential skills upon graduation in May 2007 in her future career in New York.

Caren Schiff, another senior at UGA, was selected for one of 10 spots in the Honors in Washington Internship Program. In the program, each student receives a $2,500 stipend to support their participation in an internship program in a congressional office, an executive agency, or a nonprofit organization. This summer, Caren worked for PBS in Washington D.C. with the Director of Legislative Affairs and with the CEO. Her time at PBS taught her about the value of hard work. She said she's amazed when she considers that the actions she took this summer may have had some effect on a national level. Upon returning to the University, Caren had a greater awareness about the world of politics and the media. She looks forward to applying the knowledge she gained through this invaluable opportunity in her future classes, future jobs and throughout life.

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~ Special Thanks to our Corporate Partners ~