AS president attends leadership seminar
Annual event at Panetta Institute
Caliah Hill, CSU Monterey Bay’s student body president, recently completed the 12th annual Student Leadership Seminar at the Panetta Institute for Public Policy. The program was held June 19-25 on campus.
Last year, Hill (at left) served as vice president of CSUMB’s Associated Students, then, in the spring of 2011, was elected president for the upcoming school year. She has been involved with student government since her first semester on campus, when she served as the ethics officer on the elections committee. That led to an appointment to the Board of Directors of the California State Student Association.
A resident of San Diego, Hill is a senior majoring in Human Communication with a pre-law emphasis.
She joined 28 other student leaders from throughout the CSU system, Santa Clara University, Dominican University of California and Saint Mary’s College of California at the weeklong event.
The objectives were to teach leadership principles, strategies and practices; to send the students back to their campuses and communities as more effective leaders; and to encourage them to pursue lives of public service.
On June 25, following six days of seminars and exercises, the participants gave presentations on their personal perceptions of leadership and their plans to apply the lessons they learned to their academic, professional and political objectives.
Former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Norm Mineta gave the seminar’s concluding remarks on leadership at the national level.
“These inspiring young people have already committed themselves to positions of leadership at their home campuses,” said Sylvia Panetta, director of the Panetta Institute. “We want to foster that spirit of participation and engagement and encourage them to continue to live lives of public service well beyond their schooling.
“The Panetta Institute’s Leadership Seminar gives these students the chance to interact with like-minded individuals and to gain knowledge and inspiration from leaders from a wide variety of spheres.
“We combine practical training sessions with diverse panel discussions to give these young leaders the tools they need to succeed in elected office and in the greater community,” Mrs. Panetta said.
One of the panels addressed education. CSUMB President Dianne Harrison was joined by UC Santa Cruz Chancellor George Blumenthal and Monterey Peninsula College President Doug Garrison to discuss leadership in California’s higher education system and the need to balance state and local interests.
New this year were special sessions on public speaking and defusing difficult situations.
More information is available here.
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