Overview
Leading Change: Foundations of Action invites students to explore what it means to lead and follow effectively within real-world environments. Designed as an applied introduction to the leadership process, the course helps students move from ideas to action—connecting who they are as emerging leaders to what they can do to make meaningful change. Through team-based projects, experiential learning, and guided reflection, students learn how leadership is influenced by context, relationships, and multiple perspectives.
Using The Five Practices of Exemplary Student Leadership and The 7 C’s of Social Change as guides, students develop practical skills for mobilizing others, building trust, and leading ethically within dynamic environments. Together, these frameworks provide both the mindset and the methods for creating positive, sustainable change—on campus, in communities, and in professional settings.
This course emphasizes collaboration, communication, and critical reflection. Students participate in case studies, simulations, and project-based experiences that strengthen their capacity to analyze environments, adapt to challenges, and lead inclusively and intentionally. Along the way, they create written, visual, and digital deliverables that demonstrate growth in leadership capacity, awareness, and confidence.
Leading Change is offered as either a three-credit standalone course or a two-credit paired experience designed to complement a one-credit introductory seminar or program course from across campus. Both formats provide a foundation for leadership growth and prepare students to engage thoughtfully, ethically, and effectively in diverse organizational and community contexts.
Catalog description
Serves as a gateway to leadership development through experiential learning, collaboration, and guided reflection. Introduces students to the foundations of personal and collective leadership, emphasizing how effective action—and lasting resiliency—emerge from awareness, adaptability, and engagement in dynamic environments.
Typically Offered: Fall, Spring
1-4 credits, repeatable up to 6 credits.
LDST 2910a– Integration of meaningful service work with instruction and reflection in leadership theory. Academic work may include written projects, presentations, reports, and guided readings.