Q. Can I be a full-time student at my high school or college and participate in the Ozark Leadership Institute at the same time?
Yes! The Ozark Leadership Institute is non-residential and designed to be participated in after school hours anywhere in the country. The program is extremely flexible to accommodate busy extracurricular commitments, as well.
Q. Do I have to participate in all the webinars live as they happen?
No. All webinars will be recorded and made available online for you to view as you’re able. We designed the program this way, so you would not have to choose between participation in the Ozark Leadership Institute and your current extracurricular commitments.
Q. Will I have a lot of homework?
No. Program participants will be expected to complete reading assignments with a short reflection, will complete brief reflections on their learning from the Webinars, and will be offered additional resources to read and/or watch at their own interest. We worked with families who have busy high schoolers in designing these expectations, and we have arrived at a “work load” that is realistic, un-burdensome, and VERY worth the effort with an strong return on investment.
Q. Are there tests and quizzes?
No. There is a brief reflection assignment per Webinar. Taking the time to write your main takeaway concisely will help you process and retain what we’re learning— your participation will be tracked to encourage your engagement and pursue the graduation requirement; however, these are not “graded” and are not tests.
Q. Will participation in the Ozark Leadership Institute help my college resume?
Yes. We know from college admissions counselors that elite universities seek students who are credentialed leaders in their spheres of influence, who have developed critical thinking and cultural engagement skills, and who have sought out transformative, perspective-shaping experiences. Our program is designed for our participants to reap these exact kinds of benefits. Indeed, beyond our unique Christian leadership curriculum, our students will be challenged to consider their sense of purpose in the world by current leaders in business, medicine, law, politics, and elsewhere. As such, each program graduate will become an Ozark Leadership Institute Commissioned Leadership Fellow.