Before the rest of Hamilton students arrived on campus in late January, a group of students was busy participating in the annual Levitt Leadership Institute (LLI) training program. The LLI’s aim is to develop and expand the leadership skills required for societal and personal change in a week-long intensive program held on campus.
This year, 26 students participated in the program in concert with a 300-level College course. To be eligible, students must have maintained or exceeded a 2.5 GPA in addition to submitting a faculty reference before entering the program.
Previously, the LLI was a two-week program over spring break. The first week was on campus and the second in either Washington, D.C., or at the Highlander Center for Research and Education in Tennessee. Now, the second half of the program is incorporated into the participants’ coursework.
Within the program, the Ethnography of Leadership in Organizations includes field studies in Washington, D.C. The course’s professor, Susan Mason, is a consultant specializing in ethical and effective leadership and communication as well as an adjunct professor in Hamilton’s Leadership Studies department. She has previously worked with the United Nations, J.P. Morgan, and the U.S. Department of Justice.
Those interested in the Highlander track must take another course in the Education Department taught by Professor Meredith Madden. Her research focuses include educational equity, structural inequalities in education, and ethnography.
Participants also work with various experts. Visiting professor Margo Okazawa-Rey, a founding member of the International Network of Women Against Militarism and the Institute for Multiracial Justice in San Francisco, conducted two workshops with LLI participants. On one of these days students traveled to Rome and Utica to meet with local leaders, including Mayor Robert Palmieri and Sonia Martinez who is the chair and founder of the Mohawk Valley Latino Association.
“Students conducted interviews to talk about how they view leadership and test out some of the subject matters from the LLI and their application in the leadership field,” said Susan Mason, the director of the program. During the D.C. portion of the program, students also have the opportunity to meet with important figures, from NGO members to Congress members.
“The days were divided between team-building activities and leadership development,” said Acacia Bowden ’20, a student leader for the LLI. “Susan Mason taught the participants about communication styles and skills, empathy, managing versus leading, and mindfulness. Nicole Taylor ’19, my co-leader, and I led the team-building activities that included an escape room, an egg drop contest, a logo/slogan competition, and a tower building competition.”
Both program directors and student participants said they appreciate the many skills that the LLI teaches.
“The Levitt Leadership Institute taught me valuable leadership skills including knowing yourself, teamwork, communication skills, empathy, and problem-solving skills. I also learned how to host a formal reception and important networking skills,” said Bowden.
