Leadership Development

We develop students with a passion to grow in their service to North Carolina and beyond.

The Caldwell Fellows program is designed with experiences that build upon one another, progressively deepening students’ development by building a lifestyle of growth and service through experiential learning. Each year in the program presents a new series of challenges and a deeper call to service and leadership.

The first year

First-year Fellows are immediately launched into the expectations and opportunities that await them beginning with a first-year retreat to get oriented to the responsibilities, expectations, and opportunities that await them. They are encouraged to apply their first experiential learning stipend to one of the Caldwell Fellows summer programs like our Wilderness Expedition. 

The second year – “Learn to serve”

An honors course founded on Robert Greenleaf’s philosophy of servant leadership orients Caldwell Fellows on their path to leadership development. Students create a unique Philosophy of Leadership and a Personal Development Plan, work with a personal executive coach, and select a focal point for their leadership and service with one of the program’s community service partners. A global engagement or undergraduate research experience is encouraged for the summer after sophomore year. 

The third year – “Serve to lead”

Upper-class students serve as service-learning team coordinators and team leaders for the program’s service-learning partnerships, helping facilitate the sophomore seminar for incoming Fellows. The third-year experience stresses professional development and students are guided toward undergraduate research, internships, and mentoring by program alumni. Upper-class Fellows attend a three-day capstone leadership training at the Center for Creative Leadership. A summer experience to further professional development is encouraged after the junior year. 

The fourth year – “Lead to serve”

Servant-leadership is a concept that infuses “service” into all aspects of life. “Service-living” in the realms of vocation, civic engagement, and a life of balance come together in the senior experience. The Caldwell Fellows provide support and guidance as seniors apply for prestigious post-undergraduate fellowships and scholarships, jobs, or graduate school. The Caldwell Fellows have brought considerable distinction to NC State through earning graduate fellowship awards and attaining senior leadership positions in organizations across the United States and the world.