The Department of Educational Leadership and Human Development will offer a course on leadership in non-profit organizations, next semester.
It will be part of ELH 381, Seminar in Leadership, which has offered students a variety of one- to two-credit hour courses – of which multiple sections can be taken for a maximum of three credit hours. Since 2006, seminars on specific leadership topics such as Women in Leadership, Bipartisan Leadership and Servant Leadership.
“We haven’t had any courses for leadership in non-profit organizations,” Sara O’Shea, director of the Lewis J. Burger Center for Student Leadership and Public Service, said. “This gives students that chance.”
Sophomore mechanical engineering major Erik Pasillas said he thinks the class will be interesting.
“I would take it,” he said. “My capoeira group is a non-profit organization, and it would be cool to see how it should be run.”
The course, worth one credit hour and available to any student, will be team-taught, by Eric Michel, a business professor, and Rebecca Earhart, who works for a non-for-profit organization, Fayette Companies.
The class will try to answer the question, “How should a not-for-profit organization best be led?” Michel said.
He also said he thinks this class presents a good opportunity for students.
“This seminar is usually graduate-level curriculum,” he said.
Earhart, who works as a counselor in Peoria public schools that battle substance abuse and mental health, said she agrees with her colleague.
“The class would definitely benefit a variety of majors,” she said. “Social work, psychology, communication, even business. It’s really for anyone who wants to broaden their horizons.”
Sophomore civil engineering major Danny Byrne said he doesn’t think the class will be useful.
“To me, leadership is not something you can take classes on,” he said. “It’s something you have to learn for yourself. You can’t learn leadership from a book.”
The duo has been teaching a strength-based leadership section of ELH 381 this semester, and will teach it next semester as well.
“I really like the co-teaching method,” Earhart said. “Our strength-based leadership class has been really dynamic.”
Four other sections of ELH 381 will also be offered next semester, including the strength -based leadership class taught by Michel and Earhart as well as experiential leadership and leadership without authority.
Bradley also offers a leadership minor, which requires 18 credit hours.
Michel and Earhart said they want to keep the not-for-profit class small, with only about 20 students to maintain the “strong dialogue” that has persisted in their strength-based class.
The class still has seats open.
