On Jan. 24, the College hosted its second annual Leadership Education and Development Conference (LEAD) in keeping with the College’s mission statement, “its graduates link learning with leadership.” Hosted by the Center for Community Engagement (CCE), the goal of LEAD was to “provide Amherst College students with practical tools necessary to achieve their leadership potential.”

The conference featured keynote speaker Jane Leu, a social entrepreneur and the founder of Upwardly Global, a nonprofit organization that connects highly qualified immigrants and employees together. Other highlights of the conference included workshops such as “Recruiting and Leading Volunteers for Your Mission-Driven Organization” and “Secrets to Success for Aspiring Entrepreneurs and Community Leaders.” The last segment of the conference was a student panel composed of on-campus leaders who described their leadership roles and successful as well as unsuccessful leadership techniques.

This year seemed no different in terms of success. Students who attended the conference, such as Crystal Williams ’13, came away with new insight into leadership skills. “The LEAD conference presented an excellent opportunity to learn about different strategies and mechanisms that successful leaders often utilize,” said Williams. “The conference has definitely taught me how to interact with different types of leaders in everyday situations.” As a follow up, the CCE will also be hosting a Community Engagement Fair for students who “want to make [their] second semester more meaningful than [their] first” on Jan. 28.