September 18, 2008
For Immediate Release
For an Interview:
Matt Harrison
(425) 761-7583
Utah Valley University’s top-ranked Center for the Advancement of Leadership (CAL) is holding its 9th annual leadership conference on Oct. 7 from 8:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the McKay Center. This year’s theme is “The Engaged Leader: Building Your Capacity to Influence.”
More than four thousand high school and college students will gather at the conference to listen to some of the most recognized leadership authorities share their philosophy on leadership. The opening keynote speaker will be Ron McMillan, co-founder of VitalSmarts whose programs are used by more than 300 of the Fortune 500 Companies, and the closing keynote speaker will be Sharlene Hawkes, former Miss America, Chief Marketing Officer for StoryRock and award-winning ESPN Sports broadcaster.
Additionally, students will break up into small groups and meet in classrooms all over campus to listen to other local leaders explain various leadership principles. A breakfast will be held in the morning of the conference for executives, high level managers and other distinguished guests from various careers to learn more about CAL.
“The Center for the Advancement of Leadership is leading the charge for developing leadership skills, competencies and experiences for students of all ages,” said Stephen R. Covey, author of Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. “With this vision, I am thrilled to be involved with this cutting-edge program and encourage our community to be involved."
“We rank CAL among the top 10 leadership programs at universities,” said Ken Shelton, editor and CEO of Leadership Excellence, an organization who ranks leadership programs worldwide. “CAL has better leadership training than all the other universities in this state put together.”
Through the extracurricular activities CAL provides, students gain experience and accomplishments that help them when applying for a job or graduate school. This is done by the combined efforts of the student and professional mentor given to CAL members to help them in their development. Students who complete one of the three levels of CAL have this accomplishment recognized on their college graduation diploma and recorded on their transcripts, similar to an honors program. CAL also helps students as they apply for jobs and graduate programs by providing a letter of reference.
Drawings and prizes will be given away at the Conference, along with information regarding scholarship opportunities.
For a schedule of events and more information, visit www.uvu.edu/leadership.
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College Marketing Contact:
Kim Chapman
(801) 863-6807
Written by:
Britnee Nguyen
(801) 863-8504