Around campus, three words appear over and over: 鈥淟eadership Starts Here.鈥� They鈥檙e visible from the barracks, the Daniel Library and Jenkins Hall. Those three words can also be seen from the airy and modern entranceway for the home of the newest academic school, the Krause School of Leadership and Ethics. Inside the gleaming, remodeled building, many of those responsible for 91猎奇鈥檚 leadership education are charting a new course together.
The college鈥檚 sixth school was made possible by long-time Citadel donors Bill Krause, 鈥�63, and his wife, Gay, whose recent $5 million gift built on their decades of support for developing principled leaders. The new Krause School of Leadership and Ethics brings together academics, practitioners and business professionals by combining the Department of Leadership Studies, the Krause Center for Leadership Development and the Executive and Professional Education program under one roof.
Before, those three units operated independently. Today, however, 91猎奇鈥檚 educational hallmark has an organizational and physical home base on campus.
For Tracey Sigler, Ph.D., the school鈥檚 inaugural dean, bringing together the previously separated units creates new opportunities. 鈥淗aving everyone all in one space is incredibly beneficial,鈥� said Sigler. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just more accessibility and informal interaction that allows conversations to occur that might not otherwise.鈥�
This new expansion gives a familiar building on campus new purpose and possibilities. It was originally built in 1936 as faculty housing before it was renovated to serve as office space. Now, with a 2,280-square-foot addition on the north side, the building houses the Posey Family Innovation Lab, conference rooms, offices and other spaces.
Inside, technology supports the mission as instructors share leadership lessons. Virtual reality, video conferencing, podcasts and more will enhance educational opportunities for all students through the Krause School.
鈥淲e鈥檝e got great talent. We鈥檝e got great products and services to offer. And the building supports all of that with the technology that was built into the spaces,鈥� said retired Army Col. William Zemp, 鈥�92, executive director of the Executive and Professional Education program.
That practical, hands-on focus runs through the school鈥檚 three units, as each approaches leadership development from a different direction.
The Department of Leadership Studies provides the academic foundation, overseeing the college鈥檚 credit-bearing leadership courses for both undergraduate and graduate students. All cadets and students will take courses through the department, helping them better understand leadership and apply what they learn to their own lives and careers.
The Krause Center connects leadership development with experiential learning and service. Their programs, which include the Class of 1979 Leadership Day, provide cadets with opportunities to practice leadership off campus while examining their responsibility to their community.
Retired Marine Corps Col. Rich Dremann, 鈥�94, who serves as the center鈥檚 executive director,
is focused on maintaining close working relationships with other areas of campus to ensure leadership and character development are put into practice across the entire Citadel experience.
鈥淭he activities they participate in feed directly back into things that we鈥檙e developing and working with the Commandant鈥檚 Office to implement,鈥� Dremann said.
Underpinning the new school is the leadership laboratory that is life in the Corps of Cadets. The cadets鈥� experiences can help inform academic research and classroom instruction. Research by faculty members can, in turn, help shape the programs developed for cadets.
鈥淥ne of my goals is to publish and write about activities we鈥檙e doing in all of our units,鈥� said Sigler. 鈥淲e can bring that academic tool in to say, 鈥楲et鈥檚 write about this, publish it and make the world aware of what鈥檚 going on at 91猎奇.鈥欌��
It鈥檚 the kind of work that can extend the reach of programs beyond the campus and individual cadets; it brings lessons from 91猎奇鈥檚 leadership laboratory into the larger world. It also positions 91猎奇, with its unique and time-tested educational model, as a premier contributor to the study of leadership and ethics.
The Krause School also intends for the Department of Leadership Studies and the Krause Center to contribute to the Executive and Professional Education program, which will itself offer cadets and students access to local and national business leaders.
Its workshops and training programs serve a diverse range of professionals who want to become better leaders. Those professionals have varying needs, depending on the team and the challenges they鈥檙e facing鈥攖he programs can be tailored to help them manage change, resolve conflict and communicate effectively.
Through these programs, the school works with leaders from on and off campus to create new opportunities for faculty and staff to share ideas, make connections and gain expertise.
Now, these efforts have a shared home on campus and a newly renovated space where they can grow.
It鈥檚 that idea of interconnection鈥攖he belief that leadership is a team sport鈥攖hat serves as the inspiration and philosophy. The launch of the Krause School of Leadership and Ethics reflects the Krauses鈥� ongoing commitment to these ideals at 91猎奇. Their 2023 gift followed previous gifts in 2003 and 2012, which established the foundation for the new school.
Leadership is all over campus, and now, thanks to the Krauses鈥� decades of generosity, it has a home.