"Investing in emerging, new, and current leaders is vital to the future of our university.” 

- Kristin Sobolik


The UMSL Emerging Leaders Program brings together faculty and staff from across UMSL’s campus to strengthen leadership skills within the university setting, build and strengthen relationships across units and roles, and increase our capacity to transform lives.

It is a year-long, cohort-based program consisting of a series of four day-long, in-person retreats featuring a combination of guest speakers, panels, and interactive workshops designed to foster community and allow participants to learn more about their leadership style and about leading within the context of higher education. The retreats are supplemented by a series of four hour-long events in a combination of virtual and on campus formats. It is jointly sponsored by the Office of Academic Affairs and Human Resources. New cohorts are selected and take part in the program every other academic year. The next cohort will meet over the course of the 2025-2026 academic year.

In this program, you will:

  • Gain greater self- and others- awareness

  • Share and discuss leadership concepts, strategies, and perspectives

  • Apply leadership concepts via case studies and workshops 

  • Connect with other leaders, build community, and grow your network

  • Learn to lead more effectively in the context of higher education today

Academic Affairs and HR also sponsor a series of semester networking and professional development events for for alumni of the program. For a list of Emerging Leaders participants, see HR's Employee Engagement website, and look for the "Emerging Leaders."

The application process involves:

  • Completing a brief application form and a one-page leadership statement addressing the following topics through the "Apply" link on the upper right:
    • Tell us about a formal or informal leadership experience you have had that has shaped your perspectives about the kind of leader you aspire to be.
    • Describe your goals as a leader.
    • Briefly describe the role(s) that you will have or will have and tell us about how your participation in the program will benefit your unit/department and the institution.
  • Taking part in an informal, 15-minute Zoom interview with the selection team in late April or early May about your interest in the program and skills and perspective you bring to it.

  • The selection team will also solicit feedback from applicants' supervisors, and applicants are asked to talk to their supervisors and get their approval to apply before submitting their application materials.

  • Applicants will be notified if they are selected for the upcoming cohort by the end of June.

All full-time UMSL employees who have been at the university for at least a year by the application deadline and who are interested in developing their leadership skills are eligible to apply.  Priority will be given to applicants who have not had the opportunity to participate in the UM System’s Faculty Leadership Development Program (LDP) or Administrative Leadership Development Program (ALDP) within the last five years.  

For more information, contact Alice Hall at halla@umsl.edu or Heather Floden at heather.floden@umsl.edu.


Apply Here