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Leadership Development Program

MC LEADS Students together outside on a hill

What is MC LEADS?

Montgomery College Learn, Empower, Act, Discover and Serve is a leadership development program designed especially for Montgomery College students on the Germantown, Rockville, and Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campuses. This 10 week leadership program utilizes the Social Change Model of Leadership Development, which was created specifically for college students who seek to lead in a more socially responsible way and who want to learn to work effectively with others to create social change over their lifetime (Higher Education Research Institute [HERI], 1996).

Goals of the Social Change Model

  1. To enhance student learning and development and to increase each participants’ knowledge of self and leadership competence
    • Self-knowledge:  understanding talents, values, and interests
    • Leadership capacity: capacity to mobilize yourself and others to serve and work collaboratively
  2. To facilitate positive social change at Montgomery College and in the community
  3. Undertake actions that will help the college/community function more effectively and humanely

The Seven Critical Values of the Social Change Model of Leadership

Awareness of the beliefs, values, attitudes, and emotions that motivate one to take action. This is the key to being able to develop consciousness of others.
Thinking, feeling, and behaving with consistency, genuineness, authenticity, and honesty towards others; actions are consistent with most deeply-held beliefs and convictions; interdependent with Consciousness of Self.
The psychic energy that motivates the individual to serve and that drives the collective effort; implies passion, intensity, and duration, and is directed toward both the group activity as well as its intended outcomes; requires knowledge of self.
To work with others in a common effort; constitutes the cornerstone value of the group leadership effort because it empowers self and others through trust; leadership as a group process; encourages group to transcend individual goals, interests and behaviors; vital that group members explore differences in individual values, ideas, affiliations, visions and identities.
To work with shared aims and values; facilitates the group’s ability to engage in collective analysis of issues at hand and the task to be undertaken; best achieved when all members of the group share in the vision and participate actively in articulating the purpose and goals of the activity.
Recognizes two fundamental realities of any creative group effort: that differences in viewpoint are inevitable, and that such differences must be aired openly, but with civility.  Civility implies respect for others, a willingness to hear each other’s views, and the exercise of restraint in criticizing the views and actions of others.  Requires trust amongst the group members; conflicts need to be resolved but also integrated into the common purpose.
The process whereby an individual and the collaborative group become responsibly connected to the community and the society through the leadership development activity.  To be a good citizen is to work for positive change on the behalf of others and the community. The practice of good citizenship should and needs to happen at every level of the model.
The ability to adapt to environments and situations that are constantly evolving, while maintaining the core functions of the group. Change is the value “hub” which gives meaning to the 7 C’s and is the ultimate goal of the creative process of leadership – to make a better world and a better society for self and others.

Students in the program will: 

  • PARTICIPATE in active and lively workshops with skilled and knowledgeable facilitators
  • LEARN leadership skills that will continue to serve you throughout your academic, personal and professional life
  • EXPLORE your strengths and abilities and how to use them
  • BUILD relationships with academic and community leaders
  • GROW as active participants in our community 

When is the Program Offered?

We are now taking applications for our Spring cohort
Germantown, Mondays, 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Submit Applicationnew window
Rockville, Wednesdays, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Submit Applicationnew window
Takoma Park/Silver Spring,  Mondays, 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Submit Applicationnew window

Who Can Apply?

To be eligible to participate you must: 

  • Be a current Montgomery College student during the semester you are applying for the program
  • Be enrolled for a minimum of 1 credit hour
  • Commit to attending all sessions with designated cohort
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