Wednesday, Mar 30, 2011
Rider students will put their leadership and team-building skills to the test on Sunday, April 10, when they race across the Richard A. Coppola Pool — in cardboard canoes.
by Meaghan Haugh
Rider students will put their leadership and team-building skills to the test on Sunday, April 10, when they race across the Richard A. Coppola Pool — in cardboard canoes.
For the second year in a row, The Center for the Development of Leadership Skills has teamed up with Recreational Programs and the Organizational Leadership program to present the Team Leadership Challenge 2011: “Navigating Your Path to Success.” Registration for the event will start at 11:45 a.m. and the program will begin at 12:30 p.m. in the Student Recreation Center. The daylong event will feature leadership speaker Dr. Jonathan Millen, assistant dean for Liberal Arts, and mini-leadership sessions and activities led by Karissa Kozlak, a student in the Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership program. Later, the participating teams will use their newly acquired skills in order to build cardboard canoes, which they will race across the Coppola Pool.
“Whether you are new to the Team Leadership Challenge or a returning boat builder, we encourage you to join us and enhance your team leadership skills,” Kozlak said. “This year, we are also encouraging graduate students to attend the training session, where they will learn about leadership styles, interpersonal skills, teamwork, goal setting, time management, life management and conflict resolution.”
Students interested in the canoe building/racing portion of the event will be divided into teams of five and will be given cardboard, plastic bags and tape to build their boats, which they will construct on the basketball courts before relocating to the pool in the Maurer Center for the race.
As part of her capstone assignment for LEAD 598: Project Seminar in Organizational Leadership, Kozlak is helping to organize the event with Laura Seplaki, associate director for the CDLS and director of the Leadership Development Program, Elizabeth Williams, graduate assistant for the CDLS, and Dianna Clauss, assistant director of Campus Life for Recreation Programs.
Since 2004, the Center for the Development of Leadership Skills has served as the leadership training and education resource for the entire University and its surrounding community. The Center, has hosted a number of programs designed for women in transition, aspiring executive leaders, student performers in the arts and athletics, as well as lecture series, leadership trips and career workshops. The Leadership Development Program, a four-year program designed for undergraduate students, is also housed in CDLS.