Leadership is one of the most heavily encouraged skills for students at the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business to develop before applying for new positions. In addition to leading clubs or organizations on campus, students can participate in a program that focuses on challenging themselves to expand their leadership skills and “disregard the impossible.” This program is LeaderShape.

On Friday, Jan. 13, 2017, a group of undergraduates at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business completed The LeaderShape Institute. This annual six-day program is held on the banks of the Chesapeake Bay at YMCA Camp Letts in Edgewater, Md., and offers an intense ethics-based leadership curriculum that encourages students to build community, practice bold visioning, and develop a healthy disregard for the impossible.

On February 5, 2016, student club officers of the Smith Master Student Association (SMSA) and affiliated clubs participated in a day-long LeaderShape Catalyst session at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. LeaderShape is a national organization specializing in higher education leadership development programs.

Last month, the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland participated in its first LeaderShape Institute. This retreat is designed to challenge students to lead with integrity and explore what they want to do, as well as who they want to become as leaders. This institute was one of 90 campus-based sessions in the country and involved 49 undergraduate students, mostly from the Smith School. It took place from Jan. 12 to 17, 2014, at Camp Letts, a YMCA summer camp in Edgewater, Md.