Values of leadership

The Northwest Collegiate Ministries (NCM) will be holding a leadership conference called "The Foundations of Leadership" on Thursday November 29 from 3:00-6:00pm in the PUB MPR. The conference will focus on the values in leadership with three speaker presentations, a small group discussion, free food and door prizes.

"We are hoping to impart some concepts on leadership, especially values that a leader should have.  The values that we are focusing on for this conference are social justice and civic advocacy, public service, and character and ethics." said Jacob Campbell, team leader for NCM.

The speakers at the conference consist of Chief Judge Dennis J. Sweeney, J.D. & L.L.M. for the Washington State Court of Appeals Division III who has twenty years of trial and appellate law practice, and was elected in 1991 to the WA Court of Appeals.

Eastern's own Lu Brown who teaches in the School of Social Work and helped found V.O.I.C.E.S, which is an organization devoted to finding solutions for poverty through advocacy and education. And Terry Dawes, director of the Master's Commission, an intensive program training young men and women to be leaders.

"We really believe that this conference will be beneficial for students on campus.  We really believe that values are foundational for the concept of leadership.  In the leadership material that I have generally seen, I see more of a focus on management skills and other "micro" skills and less of a focus on values and the underlying beliefs of a leader," said Campbell, a senior who is on the verge of earning a BA in Social Work. He does plan to return next year and work on his Master's in Social Work.

This is Campbell's second year with NCM at Eastern but he was also a team leader for the organization at Columbia Basin College for one year.

According to the NCM corporate website, there are 36 universities across the Northwest that are involved in this organization.

On campus NCM holds has a weekly Monday bible study at 7pm in the PUB 206. Twice a month they hold "Steppin' Out" which is an opportunity to serve others through a service project.

Campbell said that on the first Saturday of the month NCM goes and distributes food from Airway Heights Baptist Church and does other service activities on the third Saturday of the month.

"The purpose of NCM is taken from a verse in the bible. It's Colossians 1:28-29 and it's to "present everyone perfect in Christ."  Basically we want to equip our students to be stronger in their faith," said Campbell.

"Students interested in the conference should show up and enjoy it. Students interested in NCM have a number of ways of getting involved. Probably the easiest way for them to hear about going on is to get on our email list which is a weekly email about events and activities," he said. Students interested in being on the email list can email Jacob Campbell at jacob.r.campbell@gmail.com.