The newly formed Leadership Coalition hopes to build an all-inclusive space for students to develop leadership skills.
The founders mass communication senior Byron Hansley, biology senior Amber Salone and kinesiology junior Macye Brown said they always envisioned an organization to connect LSU students and equip them with the resources to drive effective student leadership.
The group comes after Hansley and Salone lost a bid for student-body executives last semester.
The new group held its first meeting on Sept. 11, in Coates Hall, room 152. Before the meeting began, conversation filled the air and eager students filled the seats. Shortly after, the committee chairs and executive board members introduced themselves one by one. Hansley serves as the chair of the organization; Salone and Brown are the co-chairs.
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Membership in the Leadership Coalition is divided into three tiers: executive board members, committee members and general members. Each tier has varying responsibilities.
The Leadership Coalition is also organized into a handful of committees, including outreach, public relations, fundraising, community service, philanthropy and more.
After the presentation, the meeting turned into an icebreaker session of bingo, and students went around the room marking off different facts about each other.
Some might question whether there’s a need for the newly formed Leadership Coalition, given that a handful of other groups on campus already have similar missions. Hansley begs to differ. He envisions the organization as a hub instead of a competitor. “We saw a need for this organization as the central ground to meet students where they are and bring resources to them by connecting leadership and professionalism,” he said.
The club’s goal is to cultivate leaders on campus, using the principles of advocacy, community and resilience. It highlights these three tenants, leadership said, because they want to teach their members to advocate for themselves and others, build community by bringing people together and form resilience for overcoming the struggles associated with school and life.
Some upcoming events the organization has planned include a suicide prevention month event, a leadership workshop and a table talk event, with dates to be announced soon.
