UNF Launches Institute for Values, Community and Leadership

Joanna Norris, Assistant Director

Department of Media Relations and Events

(904) 620-2102

The University of North Florida’s Division of Student Affairs has launched the Institute for Values, Community and Leadership (formerly the Leadership Institute), emphasizing the encouragement, promotion and rewarding of personal, civic and community engagement of students with a concentration on values and leadership.

The Institute for Values, Community and Leadership is a collaborative venture between Student Affairs and Academic Affairs. The Institute is designed to provide students with leadership development and experiential learning activities, enabling students to draw on the experiences of both leadership theorists and their talents, reflective practices and ability to demonstrate strengths and attributes of a leader.

One of the many benefits of involvement with the Institute is the opportunity for students to acquire the Leadership Certificate. Fortune 500 companies, in addition to other markets and graduate schools, express the need for and importance of graduates who have developed their leadership repertoire and portfolio.

“Graduates with documentation of this ‘extra add-on’ dimension stand out from others and possess an advantage in our increasingly competitive and knowledge-based global economy,” said Dr. Mauricio Gonzalez, vice president for Student and International Affairs.

The Leadership Certificate serves as a passport of sorts, giving graduates a competitive edge and is comprised of a series of manageable steps, consisting of leadership development classes, co-curricular and community engagement, and/or international leadership experiences. The Experiential Learning Transcript provides students and graduates with an official record of advanced achievement.

The leadership development classes are offered for credit within all five UNF Colleges. In addition, the College of Education and Human Services, in collaboration with Student Affairs, is preparing to offer a Leadership minor, which gives students further options to advance leadership credentials upon graduation.

The mission of the Institute for Values, Community and Leadership is to develop and promote global ethical leadership and character among students and community through education, service and research.

For more information on the Institute for Values, Community and Leadership, contact Dr. Annabel Brooks, Division of Student Affairs, at (904) 620-4868.

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