Strategies

"I start with the premise that the function of leadership is to
produce more leaders, not more followers."
- Ralph Nader

Course Strategies

EGR 599, which is taught each spring semester by Dean Thomas Lester, seeks to develop a student's personal leadership philosophy through a series of strategies. These include:

introducing students to the concept of leadership and helping them understand the differences between leadership and management as discussed by authors in selected readings

enabling students to meet with leaders whose responsibilities impact the role of engineering in modern life through class discussions and evening small group discussion sessions

arranging for students to travel to Washington, D.C. to meet with members of Congress from Kentucky, their key staff members, leaders of national engineering societies, and high ranking officials of federal agencies that have engineering related research and development as part of their charters

asking students to consider which leadership strategies might work best for them in their roles as leaders of student professional organizations, honor societies, or as leaders in their community activities

equipping students with necessary communication skills that will facilitate articulation of their personal philosophy of leadership to those that choose to follow them and to those who select them for leadership positions.

The cost of all class materials, evening dinners with invited speakers, and the trip to Washington, D.C. are covered through a generous gift by Mr. and Mrs. L. Stanley Pigman of High Point, N.C. Mr. Pigman is a 1981 graduate of mining engineering.