The Call of Leadership: Creating a High School Leadership Academy

• In Event: Leadership Development in Primary and Secondary School Settings

Short Description

This presenter will describe the genesis, development process, and fruition of a high school leadership academy that resulted from a partnership between a leadership professor and a group of enthusiastic teachers, curriculum directors, administrators, and students. Implications for other youth leadership development projects will be explored.

Detailed Abstract

This article describes the genesis, development process, and fruition of a high school leadership academy that resulted from a partnership between a leadership professor and a group of enthusiastic high school teachers, curriculum directors, administrators, and students. Guided by the notion that, “every generation needs a new wave of young leaders to respond to the call of leadership” (Reichard & Paik, 2011) we embarked on a challenge to create a curriculum for the academy. Our aim was to provide high school juniors and seniors with a credit bearing leadership course that would help these youth develop their language of leadership and identify their own goals for leadership development. These courses cover basic leadership principles and theories along with experiential projects culminating with a presentation of the project to an authentic audience of peers and community leaders. The courses are taught by volunteer full-time teachers, trained in leadership theory and practice by a leadership consultant. Case studies, self-reflection, contemporary readings, and group projects are just some of the delivery methods and assignments offered in the academy curriculum. Original content was written and loaded as and iBook on student iPads and features fillable self-assessments and embedded videos. All of the steps, challenges, and insights learned from this experience will be presented and implications for other youth leadership development project will be discussed.

Participants

• Stephen J. Linenberger, Bellevue University

• Julianna Grabianowski, Bellevue University