What’s New
- 📣 Thank you to everyone who attended our Educating Character Across Differences: Cultivating Communities of Character in the University. Here’s an excerpt from a presentation by Irshad Manji, bestselling author, educator, and founder of the Moral Courage College:
- ⚖️ The Wake Forest School of Law and the Program for Leadership and Character will host the inaugural Leadership and Character in the Law Conference on March 27-28, 2025. Save the date here.
- 📣 The Educating Character Initiative is excited to launch a renewed Invitation to Community and 2025 Request for Proposals inviting U.S. colleges & universities to apply for grants.
Our Vision
To inspire, educate, and empower leaders of character at Wake Forest and at colleges and universities across the world.
Our Mission
To use innovative teaching, creative programming, and cutting-edge research to help transform the lives of students, foster an inclusive culture of leadership and character on college campuses, and catalyze a broader public conversation that places character at the center of leadership.
Get Involved
Here’s how you can become directly involved with our Program as a Wake Forest student, or as a faculty or staff member at Wake Forest and other institutions across the country:
Receive regular updates on events and happenings:
“An education that shapes the whole person is both necessary and desired in our world. The Program is vital to our ability to meet this moment and produce leaders for a better future.”
Wake Forest President Susan R. Wente
Who We Are
The Program for Leadership and Character consists of faculty and staff from a diverse group of disciplines and backgrounds who study and assess leadership and character, as well as students who take on the important and challenging work of developing their leadership and character. Our Educating Character Initiative (ECI) is creating a community of educators interested in character on campuses across the country and world.
What We Do
We help faculty at Wake Forest and beyond educate leadership and character in the classroom and across their campuses. We work directly with students through our Scholars and Ambassadors programs, as well as through courses, fellowships, discussion groups, retreats, and special events. We spark public conversations and collaborate with others across the world. And we strive to educate leadership and character in ways that reflect Wake Forest’s motto, Pro Humanitate.
How We Do It
We put character at the center of leadership and ground our Program’s initiatives in seven research-based strategies for developing character. Because character education is not a one-size-fits-all approach, we find value and strength in engaging diverse ideas and partners. And we rigorously assess outcomes to learn what works and how we can improve.
Stories From Our Program
![Last week, more than 300 educators gathered at @wfuniversity for our "Educating Character Across Differences" conference. The three-day event opened with a keynote discussion with @jesmynward, where she noted that "History is a key to better understand and navigate your present."
On Friday morning, @realirshadmanji led a presentation about "Moral Courage for Messy Times." On Saturday, attendees saw a lively and thoughtful panel featuring John Inazu, Rajiv Vinnakota, and Rachel Wahl. In between, the conference featured 35 distinct sessions on a broad range of topics, including programming, assessment, athletics, community building, and global perspectives. "I learned a lot myself," said our Program's executive director, @k.michael.lamb. "Our hope is that this [conference] will plant seeds that will continue to flourish in different parts of the country, and even the world."
We gratefully thank everyone who came and shared their knowledge, ideas, and perspectives, along with the supporters and team who made this event possible. As our ECI director Jennifer Rothschild put it during the closing session: "The success of this conference is a tribute to all of you."](https://leadershipandcharacter.wfu.edu/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed-pro/img/placeholder.png)
Last week, more than 300 educators gathered at @wfuniversity for our "Educating Character Across Differences" conference. The three-day event opened with a keynote discussion with @jesmynward, where she noted that "History is a key to better understand and navigate your present."
On Friday morning, @realirshadmanji led a presentation about "Moral Courage for Messy Times." On Saturday, attendees saw a lively and thoughtful panel featuring John Inazu, Rajiv Vinnakota, and Rachel Wahl. In between, the conference featured 35 distinct sessions on a broad range of topics, including programming, assessment, athletics, community building, and global perspectives. "I learned a lot myself," said our Program`s executive director, @k.michael.lamb. "Our hope is that this [conference] will plant seeds that will continue to flourish in different parts of the country, and even the world."
We gratefully thank everyone who came and shared their knowledge, ideas, and perspectives, along with the supporters and team who made this event possible. As our ECI director Jennifer Rothschild put it during the closing session: "The success of this conference is a tribute to all of you."
@realirshadmanji opened day one of our Educating Character Across Differences Conference at @wfuniversity with a presentation entitled “Moral Courage for Messy Times.” Among other things, she talked about why speaking truth to power may involve speaking to your own ego.
Manji is a bestselling author, an educator, and founder of Moral Courage College (@moral_courage). #ECIconf
Talon Keeler (‘26) shares her thoughts after moderating the student-led conversation with acclaimed novelist @jesmynward.
We are excited to welcome acclaimed novelist Jesmyn Ward to Wake Forest University tomorrow to speak at the Face to Face Speaker Forum and launch our “Educating Character Across Differences” conference at The Program for Leadership and Character at Wake Forest University. Doors open at 5pm for the 6pm conversation in Wait Chapel. The event is free and open to the public and we expect a full house, so we recommend arriving early. Hope to see you there!
@jesmynward @facetofacewfu @wfuniversity #jesmynward #facetofacewfu #wfu
Yesterday, we held a panel discussion and book launch for “The Arts of Leading: Perspectives from the Humanities and the Liberal Arts.” The editors of “The Arts of Leading,” Michael Lamb (Wake Forest University) and Edward Brooks (University of Oxford), introduced the panel of the book’s contributors. The panelists spoke about their chapters, the role of character in shaping effective leaders, and how the liberal arts can inform our understanding of leadership.
The panel discussion was moderated by Michelle Gillespie, Provost and Presidential Endowed Chair of Southern History at Wake Forest University. The panelists included:
⚫️ David Lubin, Charlotte C. Weber Professor of Art, Wake Forest University
⚫️ Paul D. Escott, Reynolds Professor of History Emeritus, Wake Forest University
⚫️ Corey D. B. Walker, Dean, School of Divinity, Wake Forest Professor of the Humanities, and Director, African American Studies Program, Wake Forest University
Many thanks to all of our co-sponsors for this event!
Our Kenneth Townsend was on @wxii12news this morning talking about the @facetofacewfu Speaker Forum with novelist Jesmyn Ward. Townsend will moderate the event, which takes place Thursday at 6 p.m. inside Wait Chapel at @wfuniversity. Doors open at 5. It’s a free event but we’re expecting a big crowd, so you’re encouraged to get there early.
Next week, we are hosting a panel discussion and book launch for “The Arts of Leading: Perspectives from the Humanities and the Liberal Arts.” Join us on Monday, December 2 at 4:30 p.m. in the Kulynych Auditorium at the Porter Byrum Welcome Center at Wake Forest University. The editors of “The Arts of Leading,” Michael Lamb (Wake Forest University) and Edward Brooks (University of Oxford), will introduce a panel discussion among several of the book’s contributors. The panel will be moderated by Michele Gillespie, Provost and Presidential Endowed Chair of Southern History at Wake Forest University. A reception will follow. We hope to see you there!
Last week, the Program partnered with Wake Law and the Legal Writing Institute to host the Clerkship College Conference where judges and clerks alike shared their experiences with our students. The final session on “What is Needed to Flourish as a Judicial Clerk” was held in-person with a panel of lawyers and judges, including Associate Justice Tamara Barringer of the North Carolina Supreme Court and Judge Michael Robinson of the North Carolina Business Court. The panel was moderated by Marin Bennerotte, a student in our Leadership and Character in the Law Cohort.
Over the weekend, we led our fourth annual Black Women’s Leadership Retreat in Wilkesboro, North Carolina. Led by our Assistant Director of Programming, Jazz Logan, this retreat was open to all Black women, non-binary, and trans students at Wake Forest University. It was an opportunity for students to relax and connect with one another. During the retreat, participants enjoyed a weekend of fun while engaging in deep conversations and building community with each other. “One of the things that I hope the students takeaway is that they deserve to find rest, even when things get super busy,” says Logan. “I hope that they know that they are enough.”
Next Wednesday, we are hosting a post-election event called, Living in Ambiguous Times: A Leadership and Character Open House between 1–4 PM in Starling Hall. Join us if you would like to come together with others to ponder the future, process your anxieties, or feel supported in your questioning. We will have snacks and be holding space for conversation and reflection.
Last week, we held an initiation ceremony for our new cohort of Leadership and Character Scholars. During the ceremony, the Scholars were recognized for their work and dedication to developing their character. They also took an oath and received a pin with our Program’s logo as a symbol of their commitment to develop virtue and serve humanity. “Scholars, as you embrace the courage of your character, know that all of us here stand ready to offer our hands of friendship, solidarity, and support,” said Dr. Michael Lamb, our Program’s executive director. “The world needs your leadership and character now more than ever. We cannot wait to see the work of your many hands.”
Join @wakecomm for a talk by Texas A&M Historian of Political Rhetoric, Professor of Communication and Journalism, Dr. Jennifer Mercieca on Thursday, October 24 from 5-6:15 p.m. in Pugh Auditorium.
This program is co-sponsored by Wake Forest Department of Communication, The Department of African-American Studies, The Program for Leadership and Character, The Journalism Program, The Department of History, The Department of Politics & International Affairs, and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies.