Leadership Retreat Engages FSU Freshmen

Frostburg State University’s annual freshman Leadership Retreat occurred at Camp Allegheny in Somerset County, Pennsylvania from Sept. 23 to Sept. 25. The event, organized by the Office of Leadership and Experiential Learning, engages freshmen in a variety of leadership-oriented team building activities during a weekend retreat.

Students attending the retreat spent the weekend in cabins in the woods working with faculty, staff, and student volunteers to help develop the skills needed to efficiently lead campus organizations as well as in a general capacity across campus. Hands-on activities included challenges testing students’ abilities to strategically plan, to work as a cohesive unit, and to rely upon each other to reach objectives.

Vice-President for Student Affairs Dr. Tom Bowling attended the first night of the retreat and led students through an exploration of their key leadership abilities as determined by StrengthsQuest, a tool utilized by orientation instructors at FSU. Attention to student strengths and teamwork dynamics served as a defining theme throughout the weekend.

The 2016 retreat featured 73 freshmen students from a variety of majors and orientation courses. Facilitators volunteered the entire weekend for the retreat and included staff from across campus, faculty from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and President’s Leadership Circle senior students. Director of Leadership and Experiential Learning Doug Baer led the weekend’s activities.

To learn more about opportunities offered by the Office of Leadership and Experiential Learning, contact Clarissa Lang at calang@frostburg.edu or find out more online.

Featured Image: Director Shawn Golden-Llewellyn, Director of FSU’s Counseling & Psychological Services, oversees the “commitment bridge” activity at Camp Allegheny. (TBL/Nick DeMichele)