SLD offers a Loyola University Chicago Student Leadership Certificate to any Loyola student who is interested in enhancing their leadership capabilities. The Certificate Program is comprised of a series of workshops aimed at fostering a set of learning outcomes modeled after the Social Change Model of leadership.

Requirements to Earn a Certificate in Leadership Development

Students are welcome to participate in as many workshops as they wish. In order to earn a Leadership Development Certificate, students must complete the following requirements before graduation:

• Participate in 3 core workshops (Leadership Foundations, Being REAL, and Leadership in Action)
• Participate in 4 elective workshops (any other workshops listed in the Leadership Development Workshop schedule)
• Complete reflective learning components

What are Students Saying About the Workshops?

"Throughout the leadership workshops, I learned how to be a more mindful and ethical person, leader, and team player. The workshops helped me redefine and reshape mentally what a true leader is and what they can acomplish when they're not only setting an example, but understanding the importance of every member of their team, group or organization. These workshops have also inspired me to be a leader of action." (Shawn Mayberry, Communication Studies Major with a minor in Urban Studies)

At the Being REAL workshop, I learned the importance of being self-aware, as it is a vital process of being a REAL leader. I also learned that having values, knowing who you are, and being a person of justice, not just of service, is also an important component of being a leader." (Being REAL workshop participant)

Core Workshop Descriptions

Although students can participate in workshops in any order, we encourage students to take the core workshops in the following order if possible:

Leadership Foundations: Learn about various models, theories and historical perspectives of leadership. Students will be encouraged to critically evaluate these approaches and to engage in discussions around leadership as a socially constructed phenomenon. Through activities and conversations, students will explore what leadership means to them.

Being REAL (Relational, Ethical, Authentic Leaders): Loyola University’s Ignatian values provide the context for this workshop, in the sense that we are called to care for the whole person, and to prepare students to be men and women for others. Students will reflect on their own personal values as they relate to leadership, and will discuss how leadership can be an inclusive, collaborative process.

Leadership in Action: Engage in conversations around leadership for the promotion of positive social change and the promotion of social justice. The goals are to support understanding of complex issues, and to empower students in their development as agents of positive change.

Reflective Learning Components

To earn the Certificate students will also engage in reflection through a 3-5 page paper (we encourage students to post this on their e-portfolio if possible). The goals of the capstone are for students to:

• synthesize what was learned from all of the workshops in which a student participated.
• relate what was learned through the workshops with personal experiences
• articulate a leadership philosophy, grounded in conceptual and experiential knowledge
• document personal strengths, and development in leadership knowledge, skills, and behaviors
• explain a personal action plan showing how a student will engage in leadership in the future

Please see the Leadership Development Workshops Schedule for more information.