This summer, two graduate assistants and two undergraduate students will assist the Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics and the Leadership Studies Program in a number of capacities.
Katie Friesen (Ryan Riley/Iowa State University)
Amy Pilcher (Christopher Gannon/Iowa State University)
Katie Friesen and Amy Pilcher, both Ph.D. candidates in higher education, will assist with activities associated with the Leadership Studies Program, which is coordinated by the Catt Center. Meg Oliver, a senior in communication studies, and DeQuan Burnside, a senior in software engineering, will assist leadership studies faculty and center staff on a variety of projects.
For the past two academic years, Friesen has been teaching leadership courses for the College of Engineering in collaboration with the leadership studies faculty. This summer, she will coordinate recruitment efforts for the Leadership Studies Program during freshman orientation.
“We will staff a booth at the Orientation Resource Fair, providing information and recruiting students to enroll in a number of introductory courses offered through the Leadership Studies Program,” Friesen said.
Friesen also will recruit students to apply for LAS 151, “Dean’s Leadership Seminar,” a one-credit course co-taught by Beate Schmittmann, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and a leadership studies lecturer.
“Every year, incoming freshmen enrolled in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences have an opportunity to apply for and take an introductory leadership course with the dean,” Friesen said. “I will be encouraging students to apply during orientation as well as coordinating the application and enrollment process for the course, which meets in the fall and spring semesters.”
Pilcher, who is currently a program coordinator for the Brenton Center for Agricultural Instruction and Technology Transfer, will start in July as a graduate assistant at the Catt Center. She will assist with the administration of the Vermeer International Leadership Program as it begins its second year.
“This summer, we will be working on evaluating the first year of the program and preparing for the second year,” Pilcher said. “I am very excited about working with the Vermeer program and getting to know the students and leadership studies faculty better.”
Meg Oliver
DeQuan Burnside
Oliver, who also has a minor in women’s studies and a certificate in leadership studies, will continue her work with the Archives of Women’s Political Communication in June and July. In June, she will also assist Friesen with summer orientation and student recruitment for the Leadership Studies Program.
“I am excited to be working for the Leadership Studies Program this summer,” said Oliver, who is from Elm Grove, Wisconsin. “This program has given me a lot of opportunities, and I hope that other students decide to become involved as well.”
Burnside, who is from Sioux City, Iowa, was a member of the 2015-2016 cohort of the Vermeer International Leadership Program and is pursuing a minor in leadership studies. He also will assist Friesen with summer orientation and student recruitment in June. In July, he will assist the leadership studies faculty with teaching, research and administrative projects.
“I’m excited to help promote the growing Leadership Studies Program at Iowa State and assist on various projects in the program this summer,” Burnside said. “The program’s impact on students’ leadership effectiveness is immeasurable. As a student working toward the leadership studies minor, I’ve felt this impact first hand.”