Not all leaders stand behind podiums and speak in front of thousands of people. In fact, there are many ways to be an effective leader, and everyone has leadership potential. There’s no time like the present to enhance your skills!

Hi, my name is Shelby Speer, and I am the Graduate Student Services Coordinator in the Center for Student Engagement and Financial Resources at the Universities at Shady Grove (USG). I am also the co-facilitator of the USGLeads Emerging and Expanding Leadership Programs at USG. If you are not familiar with USGLeads, it is a free, self-paced, completely online program open to all students taking classes at USG. After you complete a brief application and are accepted into the Emerging Leadership program, you will have the opportunity to engage, learn, and reflect via a variety of themed modules. At the end of the program, you will write your own leadership statement, and receive a variety of accolades. To further practice your skills, you will then be invited to pursue the Expanding Leadership Program.

Mimi Yaldram, a UMBC History student, recently completed both stages of the program. When asked to look back upon her experience, she wrote: “This program allowed me to learn development skills such as different leadership styles, ethics and morals through TED Talks, leadership values and philosophy, oral communication, social activism, and teaching others. All these skills helped me to become a better leader and thereby helped me to become the person I wanted to be, a role model for others. I believe this program encouraged me to be a better citizen as I think about social justice issues and how I can help my community and what my purpose is in life. This leadership program taught me to understand myself personally and intellectually. I highly encourage every student to take this opportunity to be part of this program. I am so glad and honored to have done this and it was an amazing experience.”

If you are interested in applying, please click here for more information. You are also encouraged to attend the Entrepreneurship Lab Leadership Speaker Series, which was featured in the previous blog article. We can’t wait to assist you on your leadership journey!