The fifth cohort of the Emerging Leaders Academy (ELA), AUN's all-student leadership institute, had a pragmatic leadership session with Dr. Paul Vita on November 28, 2019.
Dr. Vita, who is the Chief Executive Officer of St Louis University, Madrid Campus, also known as the American University in Spain, began the session with an activity where he had students in groups of eight step on a sheet of cloth spread on the floor and had them as a team turn it up-side-down. He offered presents he brought from his university as souvenirs to the first two winners.
He said what the AU in Spain is doing is pretty much what AUN is doing. He maintained that what all good liberal arts institutions are doing is trying to form leaders.
"We are also trying to form leaders not just for ourselves but for others. The preposition kind of situates things: the reason you are leading is that you are making the world a better place, or a little better. You're helping other people. You're doing things for the better.
"Leading for others is something that I need to preach practically in my institution. It is part of our mission and it is part of the mission of forming leaders of the future and the idea that those leaders are serving others, not just themselves and not just a certain interest."
He shared insights on his leadership journey, saying that his determination to learn is one quality that had helped him beside the teaching skill that he brought to leadership.
"Learning how to listen, how to be empathetic or to imagine how things can be better…I'm still learning these things. I definitely learned most of these by making mistakes, through experience. It is not something that you study in a book or you can memorize."
He explained that the role of listening is very critical to leadership.
"It is much more important to listen . You learn how you can help people fix problems, by listening. That is something I learned and I had to keep teaching myself to do. I will learn more if I keep listening to you what your visions of good leadership are."
ELA is a year-long leadership development program designed to build in AUN students leadership skills and potential, to foster interpersonal, social, ethical, and moral development, and instill an attitude of social awareness and responsibility. Seventy-five students are currently enrolled in ELA.
Reported by Omorogbe Omorogiuwa