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Learning to Lead UVSC Center for the Advancement of Leadership By Colin Kelly Jr., 5/12/2005 3:03:49 PM MST Is leadership an innate skill given only to a select few or is it a skill anyone can learn? According to Bruce H. Jackson, Ph.D. and director of the Center for the Advancement of Leadership (CAL) based at Utah Valley State College anyone can develop their leadership potential and he’s out to prove it. He’s developed the first program in the country designed to teach students of all ages not just how to become leaders of others, but also how to become leaders of themselves.
The premise of CAL (www.uvsc.edu/leadership) is simple
— teach students of all ages, especially kids while
they’re still young and impressionable about their true
potential before negative self esteem and social
influences convince many that they belong on the bottom
rung of the ladder. “People either get promoted or fired based on their personal and interpersonal leadership skills,” says Jackson. “This is one of the most common denominators of success or failure in the world of work today. Most schools simply don’t address this need.” Self-awareness, personal progress and leadership skills are simply not actively taught in public schools. Jackson believes there is a leadership vacuum and intends to fill this very important need by helping youth discover their potential as men and women.
“Higher education focuses on academic training,” says Jackson. “It gives you knowledge. But we know from the literature and we know from professionals that while knowledge is necessary, it alone is not a sufficient condition for success. Our kids today need something more than just academics to succeed. My focus is to also provide leadership skills via a very clear structure and methodology for giving those principles, skills and experiences to every school and every student who wants them.”
CAL offers programs for five different age ranges: K – 6; 7-9; 10-12, college, and the business world. Each program focuses on four levels of leadership that build off each other.
They are 1) personal leadership/mastery skills; 2) interpersonal leadership /relationship skills; 3) organizational leadership skills; and 4) civic/service leadership skills. The philosophy is to start with self-leadership and then end at the community level — recognizing that excellence is something that begins with “you” and ends with service towards “others.”
With a background in marketing, business management, organizational behavior and human performance, Jackson is an ideal candidate for bringing together all the necessary pieces and people to form the most comprehensive program in the nation.
CAL supports both directly and indirectly five programs,
which include:
For those at the grade school level, CAL supports the “Know Greater Heroes” program, which is organized and delivered by Chris Brown and UVSC’s athletic department. The program reaches more than 30,000 kids per year with the goal of helping them believe in themselves. They receive instruction in letting go of fears, stepping-up, building momentum in their lives, making important decisions and creating the energy necessary to set and accomplish goals.
2) Why Try? For those navigating the awkward junior high years, CAL supports the “Why Try?” program designed to provide encouragement during times of frustration and peer pressure. It teaches discipline and self-respect while convincing students it is worth the effort to rise above challenges. This is currently a worldwide program that CAL, through its leadership students, will begin delivering locally to junior high students.
3) Principles of Leadership High school students can earn college credit by taking the “Principles of Leadership” concurrent enrollment class. The State Board of Education recently approved the class, which means that any high school in Utah can receive funding for successfully delivering the course. Students receive college credit for participation. Seven high schools currently offer it, with more planning on doing so soon. A certification program will be offered this June to all qualified high school teachers who wish to teach the program.
4) Leadership Certification for UVSC Students CAL’s program for UVSC students offers a model of leadership training for all UVSC students. Students from any department can take advantage of it and earn one of three different leadership certificates while obtaining their academic degree. While obviously advantageous for UVSC’s business students, other university departments are realizing the importance of including a leadership component. Any student, from culinary arts and fire science, to pre-med and pre-law can advance both their personal and earning potential through this certification program. CAL works with all the departments at UVSC to integrate leadership training into practically any major which allows students to earn a leadership certificate along with an undergraduate degree without attending school an additional year or two. For students interested in more leadership training, dual focus degrees are offered as well as a BA degree with an emphasis in leadership. Certificate programs address the physical, emotional, psychological, philosophical and spiritual dimensions related to personal performance and leadership. Students learn key values, understand motives, and develop a long-term mission in life. Students learn about writing a personal mission, understanding personal motives and values, visualizing, self-talk, erasing negative thinking patterns, time management, focus and other psychological skills to increase self-efficacy and performance. “We cover the basics of nutrition, sleep management, physical fitness, emotional intelligence and other physical and emotional systems to help students engage the whole self,” says Jackson. “We teach them to develop a personal philosophy on life, build confidence and understand the value of learning ‘soft skills’ in pursuit of their technical and professional training. We look at leadership as something that is based on self-development, then the mastery of relationships. Learning how to communicate, deal with conflict, relate to others, work in team structures, understand diverse populations, network, negotiate, etc… are all very acquirable skills. These skills make the difference in one’s long-term success.” While Jackson admits that certain people have more natural leadership tendencies than others, he’s convinced that many leadership traits can be learned by just about anyone. “It’s similar to becoming a good tennis player,” Jackson says. “Everyone has a genetic predisposition that determines how good of a tennis player they could become. But I know that within two days I could teach you a forehand, a backhand and a serve. Now, you may never play at Wimbledon, but I can teach you to be the best you can be.” 5) Professional Development
Jackson believes it’s never too late to improve. As “adult learners” we all must constantly look at both our strengths and our weaknesses to play our best games of life. He has implemented a professional development program to teach personal performance and leadership skills for all local organizations that wish to develop their employees.
CAL offers free monthly leadership mini-seminars over the lunch hour followed up by $199 in-depth seminars on the same topics. Business professionals can attend the free seminars, and then if interested, register for the more intensive study. The series is designed to save people the time and hassle of traveling out of state to leadership conferences and seminars.
“CAL is providing a comprehensive structure like no other school in the country,” says Jackson. “We have an opportunity to influence students from the very youngest of ages to become not just leaders of others, but leaders of themselves.”
Looking to the Future Don’t expect Jackson’s dedication to his cause to wane anytime soon. He hopes to see CAL spread across the state and beyond. In early 2004, he took an 80 percent pay cut when he quit his lucrative job in the management training industry to take the director post at CAL. “I see every student as a human performer,” he says. “Whether you lead yourself better, or lead other people better, it’s all based on the same principles. By giving students these principles, skills and experiences early, we hope to help them discover their full potential in every one of their chosen life arenas.”
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