Leadership Educators Symposium

THE SYMPOSIUM MODEL

True to the format of a symposium, we seek to engage the leadership education community in dialogue and exploration of a new topic each year. Curriculum is re-designed for each Symposium to center the featured topic while making space for participant input and program evolution and adjustment in real-time. Learning from the Symposium experience also helps guide conversations and initiatives hosted and supported by NCLP throughout the entire calendar year. Recent Symposium topics include:

• The philosophy and practice of co-construction as leadership educators
• Disruption by design for leadership education
• Leadership & interconnection - building critical hope and taking action
• Leadership and democratic engagement

LIBERATORY LEARNING & PRACTICE

In 2022, NCLP and the Symposium community committed to continual exploration, learning, and growth to advance liberatory pedagogy and practice in leadership education. Liberation is about expanding beyond the limits of socialized thought and behavior that perpetuate oppressive systems and inequity (Freire, 1970). Liberatory learning inspires us to think critically, freeing the mind and raising consciousness, and taking action to advance social change and transformation (hooks, 1994; Sayles-hannon, 2007). This work is ongoing for ourselves as individuals and for our institutions. As such, Symposia themes center liberation in leadership learning and development.

2025 SYMPOSIUM THEME: RECLAIMING AND REIMAGINING COMMUNITY

We will begin this year’s Symposium by reconnecting with the notion of liberation; what is liberation, who we are in the work toward liberation, and how does liberation connect to leadership learning and development? We will then dive more deeply into the question, “How do we do this?” or, ways to incorporate liberatory practice into our work as leadership educators. Symposium 2025 invites us to consider the role of leadership education in creating, reclaiming, and reimagining community, particularly when communities are being displaced and dismantled. This includes:

• Challenging dominant narratives in leadership education to critically examine messages of what leadership is and who it is for
• Examining the role of community in liberatory learning and leadership
• Exploring how community building can be a process for reclaiming agency
• Reimagining community across lines of difference, disciplines, and institutional structures
• Discovering the power of kinship and solidarity as liberatory practices in leadership

By the end of the 2025 Symposium, we hope to all have gained:

• Deeper understanding and confidence in utilizing liberatory approaches
• Strategies for incorporating liberatory practices into your curriculum and program planning
• Relationships with colleagues who value liberatory learning in leadership education
• Ideas for new collaborations and partnerships on your campus and/or across institutions

SCHOLARS-IN-RESIDENCE 2025

Symposium Scholars-in-Residence are selected for their record of scholarship, practice, and community-building within the field of leadership education. Caring deeply about advancing critical leadership conversations, Symposium scholars craft a unique learning experience with and for Symposium participants each year and serve as guides through discussion, reflection, and engagement around the Symposium topic. We are thrilled to have the following colleagues join us as scholars-in-residence:

• Cameron Beatty, PhD | Associate Professor | Florida State University
• Chris Esparza, MA | Co-Founder and Principal | CO-Create Consulting
• Rachel Wagner, EdD | Associate Professor | Clemson University

PLANNING TEAM 2025

A vital source of support for Symposium scholars and participants (and experienced leadership educators themselves), the Symposium planning team includes faculty associates and volunteers from NCLP, our partner organizations, and our host campus. Planning team members facilitate the overall Symposium experience, assist Symposium scholars with curriculum planning, and handle all program logistics.

• Amy Barnes, EdD | Symposium Co-Chair | The Ohio State University
• Antron D. Mahoney, PhD | Symposium Co-Chair | College of Charleston
• Nick Martinez, MEd | Symposium Host | University of Tampa
• Grace Peterson, MEd | NCLP Program Associate | University of Vermont
• Melissa L. Rocco, PhD | NCLP Faculty Director | University of Vermont
• Kristen Young, MEd | LeaderShape Executive Director | LeaderShape, Inc.

LOGISTICS, ACCOMMODATIONS, & REGISTRATION

Registration: The Symposium is truly a non-profit experience - we price registration only to cover expenses of the Symposium in order to keep costs as low as possible for participants. Registration cost typically includes programming, lunch on both program days, and one Symposium community dinner. Breakfast is included in the hotel rate. 

Hotel: We typically arrange a block of hotel rooms at a discounted rate for Symposium participants. A link to book will be provided in your registration confirmation email.

Schedule: The Symposium uses a plenary model where all participants engage in all learning sessions together. You can view the 2025 Symposium general schedule here.

Participant Information: The planning team will send all registered participants an online information form to learn more about who will be attending Symposium. Responses provided on the form will help the planning team and scholars prepare a thoughtful experience with and for all participants.

Questions: General questions about Symposium can be directed to the planning team at nclp@umd.edu. If you need assistance with the registration site or process, please reach out to kristen@leadershape.org.

Check back in late 2026 for more information about the 2027 Symposium!