An element of a leadership program intentionally designed to develop leadership capacity ( Haber, 2011a , p. 232).
Published in Chapter:
Strategically Preparing the Next Generation for Leading in a World of Social Change
Joanne DeMark (Western Washington University, USA) and Christina Van Wingerden (Western Washington University, USA)
Copyright: © 2017
|Pages: 26
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-1049-9.ch120
Abstract
This chapter, in five areas of focus, reports on one university's experience with developing student leaders through co-curricular paraprofessional experiences. First, college students' capacities for social change leadership (Higher Education Research Institute, 1996), as measured by the social responsibility leadership scale (SRLS) through the Multi-Institutional Study of Leadership (MSL) (Dugan, 2006) are reported. Secondly, qualitative data suggesting themes that further inform the favorable MSL results are described, and align with several high impact student leadership development practices cited in other research (Dugan, Kodama, Correia, & Associates, 2013). An innovative approach to obtain follow-up qualitative data is described, whereby the principal investigator combined celebration with data-gathering. Fourth, the authors describe an empowerment model in one department that aims to create environments where student leaders engage in action, critical self-reflection, and skills development. Finally, strategically leading away from a centralized student leadership development program by creating a complementary, consultative model for student leadership development in a university co-curricular division is described.