VOICES OF LEADERSHIP

Chancellor's academy empowers students for success

East Carolina University Chancellor Steve Ballard urged the first class of the ECU Chancellor’s Student Leadership Academy to make leadership a part of their daily lives during a March 28 ceremony on campus.

Ballard spoke in honor of the students’ graduation from the semester-long academy that focused on enhancing leadership skills. “Keep it up, talk about leadership, live leadership, share what leadership means to your friends. In short, just do it,” he said.

The group met nine times from Jan. 19 through March 28. In those meetings, university administrators and scholars presented on topics such as leadership defined, leadership styles, leading ethically, leading through cultural lenses, leading as a follower and creating a leadership plan.

Provost Marilyn Sheerer, Vice Chancellor Virginia Hardy and EC Scholar Bruce Pittman also spoke at the graduation ceremony.

“Leadership is a very difficult thing to master,” Hardy said. “At East Carolina we say we are the leadership university. The Chancellor’s Student Leadership Academy is a tangible way for us to provide these necessary attributes to students. In essence we are empowering them to walk the walk.”

“Students are going to need to be able to do that in their lives. This program gets them on the right path for leadership success,” Hardy said.

Several of the graduates shared the key message they will take away from the leadership academy. Their comments follow.