HuskyLEAD | Student Leadership and Involvement

What is HuskyLEAD?

HuskyLEAD is a Leadership Education and Development series for all Michigan Tech students. We believe that leadership development is essential for all students to truly make an impact on campus and society. This program encourages all students from campus leaders and student organization officers, to individuals who just want to learn, to elevate their leadership skills by learning the best techniques, skills, and tips for their personal, organizational, and professional success.

What Skills Are Built Through Participation in the HuskyLEAD Series?

The HuskyLEAD series focuses on five different leadership competencies:

Self-Awareness: Part of strong leadership is learning about yourself – strengths, weaknesses, and personal values – and how to advance organizations and individuals using that self-knowledge.
Teamwork: Cooperation and collaboration are important skills to learn as a leader. You will learn about how to use and navigate groups and teams to promote strong leadership.
Communication: Leaders must understand the "how" and "why" behind communication in order to understand how others can best contribute, how to share information effectively with others, and how to send the desired message.
Ethical Practices: The ethical practices of leaders are constantly challenged. Leaders must stay congruent with ethical principles and practices and the value of affecting others lives positively.
Social Responsibility: As leaders, one of our goals is to understand our roles as members of multiple communities and how we can better the lives of those in those communities through direct and/or indirect involvement.

Fall 2025 HuskyLEAD Schedule

Robert's Rules 101

Robert’s Rules of Order can make meetings more effective, but only when everyone understands how to use them. Join us for an engaging, interactive workshop that demystifies this widely recognized system for running orderly, productive meetings. Whether you’re leading an organization or simply want to better understand parliamentary procedure, this session will give you the essential tools to participate in or conduct meetings with confidence, clarity, and fairness.

Monday, September 8th from 4:00-5:00 PM

Building Belonging For New Members

Did your organization recently recruit new members? Join us for a workshop designed to help you create a welcoming environment from day 1. You'll learn practical strategies for building a strong sense of community, introducing new members to your organization's traditions, and fostering meaningful team connections. We'll also explore how to ensure your onboarding practices are positive, respectful, and aligned with university values, so every member feels supported and excited to be a part of your group. Whether you're leading a long-standing club or a newer group, this session will give you the tools to start the school year strong!

Tuesday, September 16th from 4:00-5:00 PM

Managing Risk for Your Community and Yourself

Safety is everyone's responsibility. Whether you're planning events, managing budgets, or coordinating volunteers, knowing how to identify and manage risks is key to your community's success. Join us for a workshop focused on developing risk management plans and strategies that keep your participants safe, make your events run smoothly, and protect you from liability. You'll learn how to identify potential risks, develop event-specific and general safety plans, and ensure your organization is meeting university standards. Whether you're organizing one big event or overseeing a year’s worth of programming, this session will give you the tools to plan confidently and responsibly.

Monday, October 6th from 4:00-5:00 PM
Location: MUB Alumni Lounge B

Leading With Balance

When coursework, meetings, and extracurricular commitments pile up, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. This HuskyLEAD offers realistic, actionable approaches to help you navigate your academic and leadership responsibilities with greater clarity and control. This session is designed to help you lead with purpose while maintaining your personal balance. You'll leave equipped with practical strategies you can confidently apply to bring structure, focus, and sustainability to your college experience.

Tuesday, October 21st from 4:00-5:00 PM

Previous HuskyLEAD Sessions

Spring 2025

Creating An Effective Student Org Budget
- January 23, 2025
- Student Organization Budget Hearings are quickly approaching! Join Taylor Piering from Student Leadership and Involvement to learn budgeting best practices for creating and maintaining your organization's finances. Basics from setting up your organization's budget tracking spreadsheet to tracking expenses will be reviewed.
Strategies for Member Engagement & Retention
- February 11, 2025
- Keeping members engaged and involved is crucial to the success of any group. Without proper engagement, retaining members can become a challenge. Join us to discover proven techniques for boosting participation and maintaining long-term commitment within your group.
Leading the Charge for a Sustainable Future
- February 17, 2025
- Creating a world that is sustainable, prosperous, and just presents a monumental challenge, and one that humans haven’t been particularly successful at achieving. Join in a conversation with the Office of Sustainability and Resilience to learn more about the most vexing issues and what you can do to make a difference.
Effective Leadership Transitions
- March 19, 2025
- In Student Leadership and Involvement, we often hear from groups that had a "bad transition" between student organizations leaders. They lack historical knowledge, miss deadlines they weren't familiar with, and have to spend valuable time recreating what should already exist. Are you looking to ensure your organization's leadership doesn't end up in this challenging position?
  
  Join Amy Hjerstedt to learn effective strategies for:
  
  -Retaining digital documents
  -Carrying on consistent relationships with campus partners
  -Sharing necessary information with incoming officers
  -Hosting effective transition meetings
  
  A variety of resources and sample documents will be shared. Time will be provided throughout the workshop for attendees to take action steps on transition planning. It is recommended that multiple organization leaders attend together and that they bring laptops with access to any relevant organizational documents.

Fall 2024

Recruiting: Working Effectively with New Contacts
- September 10, 2024
- You've just had a successful recruiting event. What can you do with the information you've gathered that will do the most for your org? This workshop will give you tips and strategies on how to use recruiting more effectively.
Robert's Rules: Crash Course
- September 26, 2024
- Robert's Rules of Order helps us host more effective meetings, but only if everyone understands it. This workshop will help you ensure you and your organization are all on the same page.
Short Term Messaging for Long Term Support
- October 20, 2024
- How do you get the most out of your messaging? This workshop will supply tools to students and student orgs on techniques, strategies, and other perspectives for successful marketing, communication, and fundraising strategies.
Exploring Emotional Intelligence
- November 7, 2024
- IQ can get you far, but can EI get you farther? We all recognize the power of relationships, but how do you develop your own emotional intelligence (EI) skills? This workshop will both introduce the topic of emotional intelligence as well as offer practical strategies and ideas for improving your EI.