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LEAD Scholars

The LEAD Scholars program at Saint Leo University is a program designed to provide leadership development and reflection activities for students who have demonstrated exceptional leadership potential and who are passionate about intentional leadership development during their time at Saint Leo University. 



Uniquely aligned with the University mission to offer a practical, effective model for life and leadership in a challenging world, this program is for students for whom the love of learning is of prime importance. To maintain the status of the program, cohorts are limited to 10 students per class (10 first year scholars, 10 sophomore scholars, 10 junior scholars and 10 senior scholars).

What makes the LEAD Scholars program special?

It is a program with University recognition as well as:

  • Annual LEAD Scholars Recognition Celebration & Senior Send-Off in April
  • Ongoing leadership development and reflection opportunities
  • Mentoring relationships built into the first-year scholar experience to help new scholars find their niche
  • Opportunities to engage with fellow leaders across diverse university and community involvement areas
  • An opportunity to set your resume apart, including but not limited to:
    • Connecting to unique and diverse leadership opportunities
    • Designing and leading community service events (sophomore scholars)
    • Acting as a mentor (junior scholars)
    • Designing and presenting LEAD Scholar workshop(s) (junior scholars)
    • Designing and presenting campus wide leadership programs (senior scholars)
    • Serving on a LEAD scholars committee (senior scholars)

Monthly LEAD Scholar Requirements:

  • Attend one (1) Extra Leadership Learning Opportunity and submit verification documentation before midnight on the last day of each month
  • Attend and participate fully in one (1) LEAD Scholars workshop per month
  • Attend and participate fully in one (1) LEADALL event (event with all LEAD scholars; see annual timeline for LEADALL events below)
  • Make all necessary progress on class specific requirements

LEAD Scholars Program Eligibility Requirements:

  • Must be a Saint Leo University student, attending the University campus of Saint Leo University
    • For incoming First Year scholar candidates; must be accepted and deposited with Saint Leo University
  • Must have exhibited strong leadership potential through participation in high school/collegiate groups, extracurricular activities, and/or extraordinary support for family and community
  • Applicants will show evidence that their lives are guided by Saint Leo University’s core values of personal development, respect, integrity, community, excellence, and responsible stewardship
  • Demonstrate satisfactory academic performance
    • Incoming First Year scholar candidates must demonstrate strong academic performance on high school transcripts
    • Current LEAD Scholars and Sophomore/Junior/Senior scholar candidates must maintain a minimum 2.5 cumulative GPA
  • Current LEAD Scholars must also:
    • Maintain good judicial standing
    • Annually complete LEAD Scholars program requirements

Interested in getting involved? Connect with us on EngageLeo.