By Janet Athanasiou
Student and Alumni Affairs Liaison, APUS

Did you know that American Public University System (APUS) has a specially designed program designed to help students, alumni, faculty and university staff improve their leadership skills? Launched in 2017, Campus Leadership is a coordinated leadership program that is intended to create a culture where students, alumni, faculty and university staff collaborate and engage with each other to foster innovation, creativity, and inclusion in their out of classroom experiences.

Campus leadership is a coordinated co-curricular and extracurricular effort that provides a structural model of engagement for students, alumni, faculty and staff. Our campus leaders serve as chapter officers and advisors of student organizations, as mentors and mentees in the ClearPath mentoring program, and as Social Influencers helping to promote the APUS brand through their own social media sites. Because the roles are so different, it is hard to quantify a specific amount of time that is involved, but you can expect to spend two to three hours a month on campus leadership activities.

What Are the Benefits of the Campus Leadership Program?

There are many benefits to getting involved in the Campus Leadership Program:

Development of the Campus Leadership Program

To create the Campus Leadership program, we assessed the campus leader experience and examined what and how much university students learned by being involved in student organizations, mentoring, and the Social Influencer programs. Students and alumni submit an assessment at the start of their campus leadership experience, and then do a second assessment at the six-month point into their roles.

The most powerful leadership tool you have is your own personal example. — John Wooden, basketball player and coach

Leadership Training Available

Campus leaders, including students, alumni, faculty and staff, are provided with a series of online self-paced trainings that help their participants understand the core areas of campus leadership. These areas include:

• Organizational knowledge and strategy
• Self-management
• Administrative and project management
• Critical thinking and reflection
• Communication skills
• Leadership and teamwork

How to Get Involved

The Office of Student and Alumni Affairs is excited to help you get involved and stay connected to students and alumni outside of the classroom. We have a number of leadership opportunities available and would love to hear from you. If you are interested in being a campus leader or learning more about the Campus Leadership Program, don’t hesitate to contact us at studentaffairs@apus.edu.

About the Author

Janet Athanasiou has worked for American Public University System since 2011, holding positions such as Academic Advisor, Senior Manager of Advising Schools, and Graduate Academic Advisor. Previously, she worked as a Residence Coordinator for the University of Alberta in Canada. Her academic credentials include a bachelor’s degree in history from Dalhousie University and a master of education degree in counseling psychology from James Madison University. Janet is currently working on her doctoral degree in higher education and higher education administration at George Mason University.