A new group of UTC students will build teams, develop lifelong leadership skills, create a vision for the future and lead with integrity as the Division of Student Development and the Dean of Students Office offer the 2015 LeaderShape Institute®–“six intense days of dialogue and interactive self-discovery in a supportive Learning Community,” and the flagship program from the nationally recognized nonprofit organization LeaderShape, Inc.
“Students who participate in LeaderShape learn about themselves and about why it is important to lead with integrity. These students come back to campus transformed into leaders who want to turn their passion into something bigger and greater,” said Dee Dee Anderson, Ed.D, Associate Vice Chancellor, Student Development.
LeaderShape Institute® participants spend time in small and large groups. They discover more about themselves and their leadership potential while working towards a vision grounded in their deepest values.
The six day institute activities will be led by: Mike McRee, Associate Executive Director for the Delta Upsilon Fraternity Foundation and Co-Lead Facilitator; Keegan Mills, Co-Lead Facilitator. Faculty includes Greg Reinhardt, Coordinator of Maclellan Gym; Cameron Smith, Furman University Associate Director of Student Activities and Greek Life Advisor; Nikita O’Connor, Resident Director; Eddrick Brooks, Coordinator of Intramurals; Victoria Chan, University of West Georgia Center for Student Involvement Graduate Assistant. Emily Neutens will serve as On Site Graduate Coordinator and Addee Duanchan will be Onsite Undergraduate Coordinator.
“The value of investing resources into a program such as LeaderShape is the impact that our students will have on campus, in the Chattanooga community and the communities in which they reside upon graduation. LeaderShape is one of the best and most impactful leadership programs at the university,” Anderson added.
Learn the details of the 2015 LeaderShape Institute® for UTC students.
Each day participating students expand their leadership capabilities. On Day 3 “Challenging What Is, Looking to What Could Be” provides participants with the unique opportunity to begin developing their own vision for the future which defines a bold change for the a community, group, cause, or organization.
The evening concludes with a Guest Leader Forum featuring area business and education leaders from across Chattanooga. They share their insights and experiences related to the challenges of leadership.
The 2015 guest facilitators are:
Wade A. Hinton serves as the City Attorney for the City of Chattanooga. Prior to his appointment, he served as Deputy General Counsel for Volkswagen Group of America Chattanooga Operations, was an attorney with Miller & Martin PLLC, Snipes Roberson & Hinton, and was a consultant to County Mayor Claude Ramsey on issues related to diversity and minority business programs. He is a graduate of Emory University, the University of Memphis School of Law, and studied at Central European University in Budapest, Hungary. He is a member of the Association of Corporate Counsel, Tennessee Bar Association, and the Chattanooga Bar Association. He has served as President of the Chattanooga Bar Association – Young Lawyers Division, on the Board of Governors for the Chattanooga Bar Association, and the board member for the Tennessee Alliance of Black Lawyers. Hinton serves as a board member for the Friends of the Festival, the UC Foundation, the TSU Foundation, and is a member of the Leadership Development Advisory Council for the German Marshall Fund. Hinton has served as the Charter President of the Urban League of Greater Chattanooga Young Professionals and co-founded STAND (the world’s largest community visioning process). He is a member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. and the Rotary Club of Chattanooga.
Dr. Autumn Graves, Girls Preparatory School Head – A nationally-recognized educator, Autumn Graves brings years of educational leadership to Girls Preparatory School. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia, a master’s in educational administration from Columbia University, and in 2014, her doctorate in education (Ed.D.) from the University of Pennsylvania. She has served as the Upper School Dean of Students at Sidwell Friends School in Washington, D.C.; as Assistant Principal at Friends Seminary in New York City; and most recently as President of Girard College, an independent boarding school for students, grades one through twelve in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. While Graves’s chief responsibilities throughout her career have been in school administration, she has also taught United States History and Health and Wellness and has served as a student advisor and coach. Named O Magazine’s Woman to Watch for the Decade in 2010, she was an NAIS Edward E. Ford Fellow for Emerging Leaders and the recipient of a Klingenstein Center Fellowship at Columbia University’s Teachers College.
Dr. Valerie Rutledge, Dean of the College of Health, Educational, and Professional Studies Dean—Prior to accepting this position, Dr. Rutledge was the Director of the School of Education at UTC and has led the School of Education since August 2003. Before joining the UTC faculty in 1995, Rutledge taught English and Latin in Hamilton County Schools. In 1999, she was appointed to a nine-year term on the Tennessee State Board of Education. She is a two-time proud graduate of The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, where she received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees. She received her doctoral degree from the University of Tennessee.
Dr. Bryan Rowland, Vice Chancellor for Development and Alumni Affairs and Executive Director of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Foundation— Dr. Bryan Rowland began his 20-year career in higher education holding several positions at the University of Arizona from 2002 to 2008, including vice president for development for Arizona Health Sciences with the University of Arizona Foundation. He also served as senior director of development and alumni relations for that university’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. From 2008 – 2010, he served as President of the Wright State University Foundation and Vice President for Advancement and Special Assistant to the Provost. He also served as the Chief Development Officer at Longwood University and the Chief Operating Officer of the Longwood University Foundation, Inc.