Behind every great battle victory, boardroom conquest and sports team domination, there is a person who holds the team together and keeps them moving forward. Whether that person is a coach, a general, or a CEO, he or she is a leader.

At West Virginia University, the Leadership Studies Program aims to create leaders who take their teams to victory. Every year a group of exemplary students is chosen from those pursuing a minor in leadership studies to be Milan Puskar Leadership Scholars. These students receive funding to attend special conferences, seminars, and other events to enhance their education in leadership studies.

“The Puskar Leadership Scholars Program is a unique program in that it does not provide students with a stipend or an award but instead provides opportunities for students to experience leadership in meaningful ways,” said Rose Cole, program coordinator for leadership studies and advisor and coordinator for the Puskar Scholars Program.

This year’s Puskar Scholars are Cameron Taylor, a marketing major from Morgantown, W.Va.; Andrew Mikac, an accounting major from Hamburg, N.Y.; Alison Mols, a psychology and chemistry major from North Huntingdon, Pa.; Elizabeth DeVault, an accounting major from Morgantown, W.Va.; Christopher Smith, a philosophy major from St. Albans, W.Va.; Taylor Richmond, a political science major from Beckley, W.Va.; Adrienne Duckworth, a nursing major from Grafton, W.Va.; Hilah Zia, a marketing major from Morgantown, W.Va.; and Kristen Ross, a political science major from Beckley, W.Va.

“We get first-hand opportunities to talk with community, university, and national leaders,” Zia said. “It gives me motivation and drive to see great people do good things and share how they rose above great odds to get there.”

This year’s group of Puskar Scholars will be attending the International Leadership Association conference in Boston and organizing the 4th annual Student Leadership Symposium at WVU.

“While personal growth is important, we have an opportunity to help change the community around us and help inspire others as leaders, and that’s the truly exciting thing” Smith said. “This program will help me to leave a legacy, but this isn’t a legacy centered around who I am or what I have done; this is a legacy of what I can help others do and inspire in others.”

For more information, contact Rose Cole, advisor and coordinator for the Puskar Scholars Program, at (304) 293-8781 or Rose.Cole@mail.wvu.edu.

-WVU-

aw/10/11/10

CONTACT: Rebecca Herod, Marketing and Communications Coordinator
304-293-7405, ext. 5251, Rebecca.Herod@mail.wvu.edu

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