Transform your professional practice through character-centered leadership
Elevate Your Impact at Wake Forest
The Leadership and Character Certificate Program is designed for faculty and staff who want to make a meaningful difference in their work and the broader university community.
This professional development opportunity equips you with research-based tools and practical strategies to integrate character principles into your daily practice. You’ll build a foundation in character development research, engage in meaningful dialogue across differences, and develop reflective habits that support Wake Forest’s mission of developing leadership and character across the university.
Whether you’re leading a team, teaching students, or serving the university in any capacity, character-centered approaches enhance both personal fulfillment and institutional effectiveness — contributing to a campus culture where character shapes how we lead, teach, and engage.
Practical Skills for Real Impact
Learn evidence-based strategies to incorporate character and ethical leadership into your specific role, creating positive change in your immediate work environment and beyond.
Research-Based Foundation
Develop a deep understanding of character development research and how virtues like integrity, courage, and wisdom manifest in workplace scenarios across university contexts.
Enhanced Dialogue Skills
Master techniques for leading thoughtful conversations about complex issues and facilitating respectful dialogue across differences, essential skills for today’s diverse workplace.
Reflective Practice Framework
Establish sustainable practices for ongoing self-reflection, growth, and accountability that will serve you throughout your career.
Community and Connection
Build meaningful relationships with colleagues who share your commitment to character-centered work, creating a supportive network across the university.
Professional Growth Recognition
Earn a certificate that demonstrates your commitment to continuous learning and ethical leadership, valuable for career advancement and personal development.
A Cohort Journey
This year’s certificate program brings together a select group of 30 faculty and staff to learn and grow as a community. Moving through the program together, cohort members build relationships across departments while developing a shared language and practice around character-centered leadership.Each workshop is facilitated by experts in character development and leadership, ensuring high-quality content tailored to university contexts.
Expert-Led Sessions
Each workshop is facilitated by experts in character development and leadership from across the Program for Leadership and Character, ensuring rich, research-grounded content tailored to the realities of university life.
Meaningful Application
Every session includes practical tools you can begin using immediately in your work, paired with structured reflection to help you integrate new insights — and a cohort of colleagues to think alongside you throughout the year.
Upon completion of the Wake Forest Leadership and Character Certificate Program, participants will be able to better:
✅ Understand the Foundations of Character Development
Recognize research-based approaches to character development and how virtues like integrity, courage, and wisdom manifest in workplace scenarios across university contexts.
✅ Apply Character-Centered Leadership
Connect leadership theories with character principles to improve organizational culture and institutional effectiveness through ethical decision-making and inclusive practices.
✅ Integrate Character into Professional Practice
Develop tailored approaches to embed character development into your specific professional context, including curricula, policies, team-building, and daily interactions.
✅ Promote Dialogue across Differences
Lead thoughtful conversations that explore ethical dilemmas, promote respectful dialogue on complex issues, and embrace diverse perspectives in your work environment.
✅ Cultivate Reflective Practice
Establish personal and organizational rituals that encourage ongoing self-reflection, growth, and accountability around character development.
✅ Advance Institutional Character
Collaborate with colleagues to design processes, programs, and structures that embed character principles into university programs and operations and advance Wake Forest’s mission of developing ethical leaders.
Who Should Participate?
This program is designed for all Wake Forest faculty and staff who want to:
- Enhance their leadership effectiveness
- Create more positive work environments
- Align their professional practice with their values
- Contribute to Wake Forest’s mission of developing ethical leaders
- Build meaningful connections with colleagues across the university
- Invest in their personal and professional development
No prior experience required – just a willingness to learn, reflect, and grow.
Program Investment
What’s Included:
- Eight expert-facilitated workshops
- All materials and resources
- Lunch at each session
- Certificate of completion
- Recognition at annual celebration event
This program is offered free of charge to all Wake Forest faculty and staff.
Time Commitment
Total investment: approximately 14 hours over the course of the academic year
- Eight 90-minute workshops (12 hours total)
- Brief reflection assignments after each session (approximately 15 minutes each, 2 hours total)
Getting Started
To receive the Wake Forest Leadership and Character Certificate, complete all eight workshops with your cohort between September 2026 and April 2027, and submit a brief reflection assignment after each session.
Certificate Requirements
- Attend all eight required workshops:
- Friday September 11th 12pm – 2pm: Welcome and Understanding the Foundations of Character Development (Michael Lamb)
- October 23rd 12pm – 1:30pm: Seeing Through Differences: The Power of Reflection in Relationships (Cristy Gulserian)
- Friday November 13th, 12pm – 1:30pm: Balancing Advocacy and Inquiry for Deep Understanding of the Other (Fatima Hamdulay)
- Friday December 11th 12:00 – 1:30pm: Character Strengths in Action: Applying the VIA Framework to Professional Growth (Becky Park)
- Friday January 15th 12pm – 1:30pm: Teamwork and Trust (Ben Rigney)
- Friday February February 12th 12pm – 1:30pm: Making Good Calls When It’s Complicated: A Practical Roadmap for Workplace Dilemmas (Kathleen Stimely and Ali Donovan)
- Friday March 5th 12pm – 1:30pm: Leadership under Pressure (Kenneth Townsend)
- Friday April 16th 12pm – 1:30pm: Lego Exploration with Virtue: What Virtue Did You Lean Into Most This Year? (Jazz Logan)
- Complete a brief reflection assignment after each session (approximately 15 minutes)
- Participate as an engaged member of your cohort community
Ready to apply? Submit your interest form and a brief letter of support from your supervisor by July 31, 2026. Cohort members will be notified during the first week of August.
Questions?
Contact Kathleen Stimely
Senior Director of Program Administration
📧
📞 336-486-1568
Reach out with any questions or to learn more about the certificate program.
Join colleagues across Wake Forest who are committed to leading with character and making a positive impact in their work and community.
“Character is not just what we do when no one is looking—it’s how we shape every interaction, decision, and opportunity to create the kind of community we want to be part of.”