The program, to begin Fall 2020, offers leadership development training for its faculty and staff.
Tigerville, SC -- North Greenville University (NGU) announces its newly launched NGUleads program. The program, to begin Fall 2020, will offer a leadership development program to provide enhanced professional development training for its faculty and staff. Participants who complete the year-long program will receive a leadership certificate from NGU.
Participants will develop professionally through sessions on leadership while learning from experts in respective fields of leadership. Alumni of the leadership program will continue to engage in the mentorship of future participants and development of future programming. NGU will ultimately produce leaders that own the cause of NGU with excellence.
“Leadership is both integral to and an overflow of healthy community. NGU is committed to cultivating leaders who will serve the university for its next generation and who will serve the region’s churches and organizations,” said NGU President Dr. Gene C. Fant Jr. “We are blessed with a number of strategic senior leaders who have a passion for developing the next generation and look forward to seeing how this pipeline strengthens us for years to come.”
Dr. Jill Rayburn, assistant provost for academic outreach and director of professional programs, says in addition to developing their leadership skills, NGUleads participants will have the opportunity to “connect with our community and further understand the mission and operation of NGU." Local business, governmental, and ministry leaders will be invited to speak to the group about leadership and share about their own story of integration of faith at work.
“We will also invite our NGU executive leaders to spotlight their areas of service at NGU, as well as pull from their expertise in the professional development sessions,” Rayburn said.
NGUleads hopes to build community within the Cohort. They will be challenged to work as a team to develop an initiative or project to enhance the university culture. They will meet in small group roundtables to digest and flesh out the nuggets from the large group monthly session, and they will have the opportunity to develop presentation skills and showcase their own areas of expertise.
Some of the professional development topics in the program will include: Becoming a Leader in Christian Higher Education, Faith Integration in Higher Education, Emotional Intelligence, Networking Skills, Innovation, Decision Making, Conflict Resolution, Team Building and Design, Effective Communication, Strategic & Organizational Planning, Budgeting, and Community/Political Engagement.
“The most rewarding part for me, personally, about the development of this program has been working with this team,” said Rayburn.
Along with Rayburn, the core team consists of Director of Career Planning and Assistant Men’s Housing Director Stuart Floyd, Director of Undergraduate Enrollment Katie Lynn Marshall, Assistant Vice President for Greer Campus Operations Justin Pitts, and Associate Vice President of Student Engagement Dr. Jared Thomas.
Director of Undergraduate Enrollment Katie Lynn Marshall is excited about the incredible opportunity that NGUleads brings to the university.
“This program is sure to help train and cultivate leaders among our current faculty and staff and is thoughtfully crafted to provide a professional development opportunity that is unified with the university’s mission and vision,” she said. “The curriculum reinforces NGU’s rich history, along with providing new opportunities to learn from university stakeholders and community leaders. NGULeads will create a culture of excellent leadership and mentorship across campus,” Marshall said.
“This talented group of leaders, along with other NGU faculty and staff, started informal group meetings to challenge each other to more exceptional leadership and professionalism. The NGU senior leadership saw their initiative and got behind it 100%. This desire to grow personally to serve NGU better and our mission is typical of our faculty and staff,” Rayburn said. “I’m excited about how the Lord will work in and through generations of NGUleads graduates.”
