Vision Statement
Cultivating Women Leaders: One Voice at a Time

Mission Statement
To create a framework of opportunity for all students to experience intersections between their academic training and the principles and practices of effective leadership.

To encourage and support the recognition and development of leadership potential, Columbia College offers regular opportunities inside and outside of the classroom for students to examine their own education and growth from a perspective of positive social and institutional change. Orientation programs and first-year General Education courses emphasize personal and social responsibility, critical thinking, and strategic decision-making. Other General Education courses are designed to develop student writing and oral communication skills.

“You can also find leadership in small acts, like taking a student aside and saying, ‘We’re in English together, and I can help you.’ People need to understand leadership exists on a variety of levels.”
- Linda Posey, '09

To further infuse Leadership Studies throughout the curriculum, faculty members in all departments are encouraged to identify relevant classes, and to design experiences and assignments that connect academic material to leadership examples. Student Affairs initiatives include activities in which students examine their own behavioral expressions of power and influence. For students who want to explore these issues even further, Columbia College offers a Minor in Leadership Studies which includes formal coursework and experiential learning. Areas of emphasis in the Minor include historic and contemporary models of leadership, issues of social context, ethics, cultural and self-awareness, critical thinking, decision-making, strategic planning, group communication, and an understanding of the social importance of service.

"My experience at Columbia College is influencing me to create change in the world before I even graduate. My personal role as a leader has evolved and the infusion of leadership in the curriculum is one of the reasons why."
- Morgan Smalls, '10

To encourage and support the recognition and development of leadership potential, Columbia College offers regular opportunities inside and outside of the classroom for students to examine their own education and growth from a perspective of positive social and institutional change.

For additional information, contact:
Tamara L. Burk, Ph.D.
Director of Leadership Studies
803.786.3554
tburk@columbiasc.edu