Leadership and Ethics Across Disciplines (LEAD) Honors Program
Director
Patrick Cottrell, Ph.D.
The LEAD (Leadership and Ethics Across Disciplines) Honors Program seeks to develop high-potential students from different backgrounds and academic interests into socially-engaged leaders in their fields.
As LEAD scholars, students embark on a journey that consists of interdisciplinary coursework and leadership portfolio as part a LEAD minor, a cohort model led by two faculty advisors from different disciplines, mentoring and training opportunities, and participation in a range of experiential activities where students will apply and hone their craft.
Good standing in the LEAD Honors program requires maintaining a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher and completing the other commitments agreed to when students accept their position as a LEAD Scholar. Students will be reviewed annually and, if found not to meet the minimum GPA or other requirements, will be placed on a one-semester probation for the LEAD Honors Program. (University-level academic standing is calculated separately and is subject to a different policy.) If a student does not meet the listed criteria after one semester of probation, they will be removed from the LEAD Honors Program. Appeals to this decision of removal may be submitted to the LEAD Program director.
(Note: The LEAD Minor is only open to LEAD Honors students.)
Courses
LEAD 250 LEADERSHIP AND ETHICS ACROSS DISCIPLINES (4 credits)
Exploration of leadership and ethics across disciplines. Identify core facets of leadership from different disciplinary and theoretical perspectives. Evaluate what it means to lead with integrity, compassion, and ethics in different contexts. Activities may include: leadership self-assessment, seminars with guest speakers, skills-training, and self-reflection. (Listed as LEAD 250 and POLS 250)
Typically offered: Spring Semester
(EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING)
LEAD 311 LEADERSHIP, ETHICS, AND PERSUASION (4 credits)
Examines the two-thousand-year-old tradition of rhetoric and addresses the difficult question of ethical argument. Begins with the Greeks, and moves into the twenty-first century. After establishing a theoretical understanding of the important questions and practices, students will consider a variety of speeches by American leaders. Ends with participants creating their own speeches on current topics. Taught as a Socratic, discussion-based seminar. (LISTED AS LEAD 311, POLS 311, AND LITR 311)
Prerequisites: INQS 125.
(ULTIMATE QUESTIONS)
LEAD 390 LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT (1 credit)
LEAD Honors learning community cohorts engage through reading, discussion, and activities designed to connect academic learning to real-world leadership challenges. Students will reflect on LEAD elective courses and develop their portfolio as their work toward articulating their personal leadership identity.
Prerequisites: Open to LEAD Honors students only.
Typically offered: Fall and Spring Semesters, Annually
LEAD 490 LEADERSHIP AND ETHICS ACROSS DISCIPLINES (1 credit)
Capstone course for LEAD minors. Students reflect on and respond to prompts related to their personal leadership style, how they have applied it to a variety of situations, and how they plan to continue their growth in the future. Portfolio construction and presentation designed to document skill development and translate into professional settings.
Prerequisites: All LEAD minor requirements must be completed or in progress
Typically offered: Spring Semester