By Carol McBryde

In the fall we told you about the newly created Leadership Education Institute, a product of a USDA Higher Education Challenge Grant awarded to faculty members Penny Pennington, Cindy Blackwell, and Bill Weeks. The program is designed to be a professional development opportunity for faculty members currently teaching or planning to teach leadership courses for undergraduate students.

This spring ten faculty members were chosen from across the country to participate in the Leadership Education Institute (LEI). All ten faculty members are from programs where leadership is an emerging focus. This group is currently participating in online discussions regarding various leadership topics, and will meet in person for the first time this summer as part of the Association of Leadership Educators conference in Big Sky, Montana.

During this meeting the group will learn more about agricultural leadership programs across the nation, including the one here at Oklahoma State University. The new major will be showcased, and some of the current courses in Agricultural Leadership will be described as exemplars of teaching in leadership.

After their retreat in July, the LEI participants will go home to continue their leadership readings and online discussions. In the fall they will meet again to focus on leadership theory, and next summer will attend the Association of Leadership Educators conference again to wrap up their participation in the Leadership Education Institute.

These faculty members will go on to develop new programs and courses in agricultural leadership, and form a network of leadership educators across the nation dedicated to similar goals. The Leadership Education Institute continues to be an exciting program that helps bring national attention to the Agricultural Leadership program here at Oklahoma State University.