A leadership program at Oglethorpe University is expanding to give students four years of progressively challenging experiences designed to prepare them to lead with purpose and make an impact in Atlanta and beyond.
Leadership Oglethorpe builds upon the foundation of the President’s Leadership Fellows, a yearlong program launched by President Kathryn McClymond, Ph.D., that introduced first-year students to leadership principles through reflection, conversation and engagement with accomplished Oglethorpe alumni. The inaugural cohort completed the program last spring.
Now led by Vincent Thomas, part-time instructor of urban leadership, Leadership Oglethorpe transforms that experience into a rigorous four-year journey.
“The goal is to develop Atlanta’s next generation of values-driven leaders over four years of intentional work,” Thomas says. “In some iterations of leadership programs, there is this element of transactional engagement. You take a workshop, attend some seminars, and you’re done. We’re building something transformational.”
Each year introduces greater responsibility. First-year fellows focus on discovering who they are as leaders and clarifying their values. In their second year, students enter the “Practice” phase, applying those principles to a yearlong “Leadership Action Project” addressing a real challenge.
“If Year One is ‘Who am I?’ Year Two is ‘Can I lead when it’s hard?’” Thomas says.
Leadership Action Projects require fellows to mobilize others, navigate resistance and make decisions when there may be no clear answer. Students also examine failure and resilience, reflecting on moments when their projects do not go according to plan.
In subsequent years, fellows will take their leadership beyond the classroom. Third-year students will complete a professional practicum with an Atlanta organization. In their final year, students will develop a legacy project intended to make an impact beyond their time at Oglethorpe.
Threaded throughout the four years is a “Leadership Autobiography,” which students continually develop as they reflect on their experiences and growth. Fellows also complete leadership assessments that allow them to document their development over time.
That structure represents a significant evolution from the President’s Leadership Fellows, whose first cohort participated in master class-style conversations with alumni working across fields including finance, law, energy, public relations and business leadership. McClymond, the program’s founder and visionary, remains closely involved as an instructor and mentor.
Leadership Oglethorpe also expands those connections by incorporating alumni as interviewers, coaches and panelists, while connecting students with leaders across Atlanta’s business, nonprofit, government and civic sectors.
“We want fellows to understand that they’re not just part of a program for four years,” Thomas says. “They’re entering a network that will continue to support them.”
Selection emphasizes potential and character rather than traditional markers of leadership. There is no GPA minimum or requirement that applicants have previously held a leadership title. Instead, Thomas says the program looks for qualities such as self-awareness and adaptive thinking while intentionally building cohorts that bring together different majors, backgrounds and interests.
Ultimately, Thomas hopes the four-year experience changes not simply what fellows know about leadership, but how they see their responsibility to others.
“Every fellow should graduate understanding that leadership isn’t about personal advancement,” he says. “It’s about mobilizing people to address challenges that matter beyond yourself.”
“If I had to summarize my hopes for Leadership Oglethorpe Fellows, I want them genuinely transformed and prepared to live out their creative potential,” Thomas adds. “I believe these students will be our investment back into our city and beyond.”
