Learning Leadership Through Community Engagement: Exploring a New Undergraduate Major

Abstract

The University of Colorado Boulder recently created a new undergraduate major in leadership and community engagement. This article describes the design process, key features, and challenges that have been involved with this initiative. The program is designed to offer a unique model of education for leadership through a reciprocal, community-based approach. Its goal is to help undergraduates develop the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to be effective, culturally responsive, and ethical agents of change. However, those involved in the project decenter this agency, positioning undergraduates as partners with rather than leaders of community.