Leadership Program Successfully Begins Second Year

This article was originally published in the 2023 Colonnade.

The Upper School Leadership Program is now in its second year, and program coordinator Eliza McGehee says she can see its positive impact on participating students. 

“I also teach a lot of the second-year Leadership students in my Social Studies class, so I see them daily,” Ms. McGehee said. “I’ve noticed they’re able to collaborate more easily and work through challenges more effectively. In group work, they can identify their strengths as well as the strengths in others.”

Braylan Rice ’25, a second-year participant, agreed. “We’re practicing skills that will not only benefit us now, but also in college and after. We’re learning about our own character traits and those of others and how to use that knowledge to be productive, efficient, and successful.” 

The Program now has two cohorts: Twenty students in the first-year group are focused on the self-development of their leadership traits and styles as well as group dynamics. Like last year, the first-year students will partner with the Student Government Association at the Jepson School of Leadership Studies at the University of Richmond. That group is also supported by Assistant Program Coordinator Scottie O’Neill, who is also an Upper School teacher. 

Nadine Odibo ’26 is in the first-year cohort. She said: “The Leadership Program has helped me grow because I've learned that leadership is an accumulation of things that build a strong foundation. Traits that a strong leader expresses are loyalty, trust, and respect.”

Seventeen students in the second cohort are studying global engagement and social justice and the topics’ connections to leadership. Small teams are researching and designing service learning projects that will ultimately be implemented locally. The students chose their topics from the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. These groups will also receive guidance from Rashad Lowery, Steward’s coordinator of campus life and community stewardship.