The Souza Leadership Center creates programs that encourage students to celebrate and bring every part of their intersecting identities to the table (from gender identity, ethnic identity, personality traits, and all other identities they hold). Diversity in thought is important in leadership. We honor and encourage our students, staff, invited speakers, and all of our partners to bring their unique voices, backgrounds, and experiences to their leadership journey. We encourage all those invited into our community to respect, value and educate themselves on identities and experiences that are different than their own.
Addressing Inequities in Leadership
We understand that many inequities exist in the current state of leadership and leader development in the U.S. and throughout the World. We aim to develop leaders who prioritize understanding these issues (including racial and gender inequities). We challenge the leaders with whom we work to address such disparities in all spaces in which they engage in leadership.
Staff Recruitment and Training
We are a small staff at the Souza Leadership Center, but we strive to create a team that is diverse in identities, experiences, and perspectives. We encourage civil disagreement as we believe this will lead to better results and more inclusive programs for student leaders. We also have it as a standard expectation that anyone who works for the Souza Leadership Center respects and values diversity, and is willing to learn and implement strategies for equity and inclusion. This expectation will be clearly outlined in any and all job descriptions for which The Souza Leadership Center recruits. The Souza Leadership staff also includes a specific goal related to equity and diversity in its annual assessment report in order to ensure accountability.
