Five rising sophomores who intend to declare majors in the Penn State Smeal College of Business have been chosen for the Penn State Presidential Leadership Academy (PLA).
Paul Birch, Hayley Legenfelder, Colleen McBride, William Swart and Erika Veiszlemlein were selected for the three-year program and are part of the 30-member class of 2016.
Founded with a lead gift from Edward R. and Helen S. Hintz in 2009, the PLA was established with the goal of developing critical thinking skills and educating students to understand issues broadly with consideration for the complexity and variability of world matters, decisions, and life’s circumstances.
In addition to coursework for the program, students attend leadership seminars, engage in community programs and participate in fully funded field trips planned each academic semester to give students a broader prospective on social, political and environmental issues.
During the 2015-16 academic year, members of the Presidential Leadership Academy traveled to Pittsburgh and the Flight 93 National Memorial in the fall and went on a weeklong tour of historic civil rights locations during spring break.
University President Eric Barron teaches a weekly seminar course in the student’s first year in the program. Honors courses had been led by Schreyer Honors College Dean Christian Brady, who recently announced he will be retiring on May 31, and Presidential Leadership Academy Director Melissa Doberstein, as well as a class with a focus on critical thinking. The final year concludes with a capstone experience and creation of an e-portfolio.
To be considered, students must have a cumulative grade point average of 3.2 or above at the time of application and include a current résumé with campus or external leadership activities. Two letters of reference, one from a Penn State faculty member, staff member or adviser and one in regard to external activities from someone such as a coach, mentor or supervisor, must be submitted with the application.