A New Generation of Leaders: Students Connect with Alumni at Annual Conference

Erika Stasakova '12 listens during a session.

Accomplished alumni shared their experiences and perspectives with more than 160 junior and senior student leaders at the 2012 Lafayette Leadership Institute, “Evolving Leadership,” on Feb. 4.

The annual conference works on developing skills and exchanging information relevant for student leaders on campus and after graduation.

Made possible by the Class of ’68 Leadership Fund, the institute is presented on campus by the Lafayette Leadership Education Committee and the Office of Student Life Programs. It consists of a keynote address with three blocks of educational sessions, an alumni panel presentation, alumni round table discussions, leadership resources, and a leadership recognition ceremony.

As a student leadership intern, Caitlin Flood ’12 (Bellerose Terrace, N.Y.) was able to experience the institute as both an organizer and a participant.  The government & law and philosophy double major was involved in every aspect of the planning, from selecting topics and inviting alumni and speakers to preparing the schedule and institute brochure.

Caitlin Flood ’12

“I think it is inspiring to see successful Lafayette alumni take the time to come back and share their wisdom with us,” she says. “All of the alumni benefited from Lafayette and have given back in some way, and I hope current students will keep that in mind and remember to do the same. I learned that leadership development is an evolving process and I hope others are inspired to continue that evolution.”

Workshop sessions covered topics including transformational leadership for positive change, adapting to the changing workplace, leadership as a motivation tool, developing organizational missions, global leadership, avoiding obstacles, using technology to network, developing a personal brand, and strategies for financial security.

Kyvory Henderson ’12 (Glen Burnie, Md.), an engineering studies major who plans to pursue a master’s degree in bioengineering at the University of Maryland, gleaned a great deal from the financial security session.

“I always wondered how I would manage money once I graduated and started really bringing in my own money apart from my parents’ investments. At the LLI, I learned how to manage my money and where I should plant it and allow it to grow,” he says.

Keynote speaker Lance Podell ’86

The keynote address, “Always on the Bleeding Edge,” was presented by Lance Podell ’86, director and global head of YouTube Next Lab. He discussed how his career spent pushing the envelope in interactive and new media has been the culmination of career moves that began even as a student at Lafayette in the mid-’80s.

Panelists included Danielle Bero ’07, founding teacher of Broome Street Academy charter high school; Renáe Biale ’82, president of RCB Communications; Reco Collins ’05, vice president of public finance at PNC Bank; Rob Coombs ’95, Coombs Chiropractic; Angela Guarino ’04, attorney with Blank Rome LLP; and Pete Lesher ’90, chief curator of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. The panel was moderated by Tom Gauntner ’04, head coach of Lafayette’s fencing team.

Reco Collins '05 speaks during the alumni panel

A number of faculty and staff members also served as presenters for workshop sessions including Anu Ghai, lecturer in economics; Rachel Nelson Moeller ’88, executive director of alumni relations; Jeff Moore P’12, CEO of Moore Leadership; Joseph Paretta, visiting instructor of English; John Shaw, associate professor of psychology; Julie Smith, assistant professor of economics; Molly Sunderlin, career counselor; Angelika von Wahl, associate professor of international affairs; Bonnie Winfield, associate director of intercultural development and director of the Landis Center; and Amber Zuber, associate director of the Landis Center.

The 2011-12 Lafayette Leadership Education Committee consists of Pam Brewer, associate dean of students and director of student life programs; Bob Dustin, assistant director of student life programs;  Flood; Jaclyn Fonteyne ’13; Sarah Frohnapfel ’13; Michelle Geoffrion-Vinci, associate professor of foreign languages and literatures; Matthew Grandon ’12; Brooke Kohler ’13; Jared Katz ’12; Nan Li ’12; Tatiana Logan ’13; Kaitlyn McKittrick, associate director of athletic compliance; Moeller; Andrew Moore ’12; Glen Robinson ’13; Adam Stauffer, director of major gifts; Stuart Umberger, director of fraternity and sorority life; Bianca Vassare ’12; and Zuber.