Student Leadership & Engagement
The Emerging Leaders Program aims to help students develop their leadership potential. They will explore and assess their own personal leadership style and begin to form and cultivate a personal leadership philosophy. Additionally, students will be asked to identify a leadership mentor with whom they must meet at least once per month to discuss and create a long-term action plan for their own leadership development. The program is designed to be a two- or four-year process. The first two years are focused on personal development and issues of social justice, and the subsequent two years are focused on professional development. Upon completion of the first two years, selected students will be asked to serve as peer mentors to future participants.
The Women in Leadership Development (WILD) program is the flagship leadership development program dedicated to educating, equipping, and empowering undergraduate women. WILD provides women with the knowledge, skills, and values necessary for effective and engaged citizenship in their local and global communities. Students are encouraged to assume leadership roles on and off campus to enhance their ability to lead in all aspects of their life. WILD women are often exposed to issues of leadership and prominent women leaders who have already established their roles as leaders within their communities and organizations, locally, nationally, and globally. WILD students are nominated by faculty, administrators, and staff members who believe nominees have leadership potential. Applicants can also self-nominate.
Living-learning communities offer students the opportunity to participate in shared learning experiences based around a specific theme. Four communities are currently available: International Cultures, Gateway to the Arts, Outdoor Adventures, and Sustainability. Members of these communities work closely with a faculty coordinator and graduate assistant, who plan and implement various programs, discussion groups, lectures, off-campus experiences, and other activities.
The Mercy Collegiate Society engages college students in the charism and work of Catherine McAuley, the foundress of the Sisters of Mercy, organization sponsoring GCU. The group is based on four pillars: social networking, service to the local and global community, the deepening of the spiritual dimension of the person, and engaging in servant leadership. It is designed to be a four-year program; however, students may petition for membership at any time during their career at GCU and complete as many phases as possible. Graduates of the program are eligible to join the MCS Alumni Association.