Leadership Seminar

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Undergraduate

This course will examine leadership in three ways: 1) by studying the definitions and descriptions of leadership through case studies and other readings; 2) by reviewing comparative analyses of leaders in public, profit, and not-for-profit sectors; and 3) by teaching through self assessments and a group project the essential competencies leaders need to be effective and hence what will be required of the students to be leaders. Specifically, the course is designed to assist the students in answering a number of key questions about leadership, including: What is the definition of “leadership”? Has the definition of “leadership” changed over time? If so, how? What are the major leadership styles? How do people become leaders? How much is innate and how much taught? What are the ethical responsibilities of leaders? How important are communication skills (written and oral) for leaders? What is the difference between leadership and management? The class requirements will be as follows: 1.) Class discussion of cases and background material (35%); 2) Self assessment of leadership qualities (15%); Final paper on leadership (20%); and 4) Group project on leadership goals, strategies, tactics and outcomes (30%). The group project topic will be: “The United States’ Policy Regarding China and Human Rights.” The class will break up into four sectors. The following sectors should be represented by a student group: the Executive Branch (the U.S. Department of State); the Legislative Branch (e.g. either the House Committee on Foreign Affairs or the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations); the human rights community (e.g. Human Rights Watch); and the multi-national organizations (e.g. the United Nations). The product of the group project should be a written description by each sector of their leaders - their goals, responsibilities, their strategies, tactics, and the desired outcomes.