Graduate School hosts Emerging Leaders Workshop August 2-5
The ninth annual Emerging Leaders Workshop, hosted by the Virginia Tech Graduate School, will be held August 2 through 5 at the Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center.
The Emerging Leaders Workshop develops and encourages students from historically black institutions to pursue graduate degrees and acquire leadership roles. This mission is accomplished by guest speakers and former workshop participants highlighting their educational and career successes to participants. Lectures, presentations, and activities are designed to develop sustainable leadership through academic success, good financial planning, community service, and ethical behavior.
The goal of the workshop is to develop a cadre of leaders who will demonstrate what they have learned and share these attributes with others in their communities. By stressing the importance of excelling in academics and applying this educational learning in pursuit of a career, students involved in the workshop will have more opportunities to serve in leadership positions and be catalysts for change.
Participants, accompanied by faculty mentors, are rising sophomores and juniors, mostly majoring in mathematics and science, from approximately 30 historically black colleges and universities. Students have an opportunity to prepare for graduate school and career opportunities through involvement with senior scholars and industry professionals who provide awareness of the opportunities available to them, both in the workforce and in academia. Students are encouraged to pursue advanced degrees and to enter the workforce, promoting long-term academic growth in communities across the nation.
Students will engage in three days of workshops in groups of 10 to 12 participants. Senior scholars facilitate the groups and address self-assessment, writing personal statements, goal setting, networking, and developing leadership skills. Senior scholars are former workshop participants and are representative of diverse institutions and academic fields who are graduates of historically black colleges and universities and other colleges and universities
Attendees will also discuss career plans and participate in panel discussions and mock interviews with corporate professionals and interviewers from organizations including DuPont, FedEx, and the U.S. Department of State.
Additional sponsors include Boeing, Carilion, City of Roanoke, The Collis-Warner Foundation, Inc., HP/Compaq, Lockheed Martin, Virginia Lottery, the Virginia Tech Africana Studies Program, and the Virginia Tech Office of Multicultural Affairs.
Author and educator Dennis P. Kimbro will be the keynote speaker Saturday evening. For the past 10 years, Kimbro has interviewed successful African Americans, in a variety of fields, to determine the source of their success.
Created in 1997, the Emerging Leaders Workshop was a combined effort of and funded by the Virginia Tech Graduate School, DuPont Corporation, and the Truman Foundation. The workshop has brought together prominent professional and educational leaders and has gained attention for its outreach to more than 500 students who have completed the program.
To participate, contact Jane Rorrer or Marilyn Kershaw at the Virginia Tech Graduate School, #115 Graduate Life Center at Donaldson Brown (0325), Blacksburg, Va., 24061 or call (540) 231-2494
