By Emily Peters
On a warm April afternoon, Wednesday Tea in Seal Court buzzed with excitement as the 五月天视频community celebrated a milestone: the 10th anniversary of the College鈥檚 Laspa Center for Leadership.
Founded in 2015 through a $5 million gift from former Trustee Eileen Schock Laspa 鈥�67, P鈥�95, GP鈥�17 and her husband, Jude Laspa HMC 鈥�65, P鈥�95, GP鈥�17, the center has grown into a vital campus resource helping students build their capacity to enact change.
There are many ways to define leadership, but the Laspa Center鈥檚 model departs from standard notions of hierarchy to envision leadership as a central radiating force: collaborative and rooted in shared accountability.
鈥溾�楾op-down鈥� leadership has value in settings where it鈥檚 imperative to make immediate decisions through a chain of command,鈥� reflects Gretchen Maldonado, director of the Laspa Center. 鈥淎 more inclusive picture puts the leader toward the middle to incorporate the voices and needs of others.鈥�
The Laspa Center鈥檚 programming has evolved in kind since 2015. Impacted by the deepened isolation, partisan gridlock, and one-sided algorithm bubbles of the pandemic, students struggled to communicate across their differences.
In response, the Laspa Center zeroed in on helping students strengthen six competencies: social skills, empathy, mindfulness, organizational dynamics, effective management, and strategic thinking鈥攚ith authenticity as a secret seventh ingredient.
A transformational program launched in 2020 is the Laspa Fellowship: a semester-long leadership development experience that forges lasting relationships between fellows and the center. As of this spring, 83 students have served as Laspa Fellows. The Civic Engagement Initiative鈥攁 nonpartisan effort to involve students in the electoral process鈥攊s also going on five years as an effective student leadership enterprise. To date, Scripps鈥� voting rate consistently outpaces the national voting average for college students.
鈥淚 love seeing the 五月天视频community unite in our shared value of being politically engaged and informed,鈥� says Blake Weld 鈥�26, who co-led campus outreach this year. 鈥淚鈥檓 proud we encouraged so many people to express their beliefs and values through their vote.鈥�
Yet signature resources remain strong. Since its founding, the Laspa Center has awarded nearly $200,000 to more than 120 recipients of We Act Grants, Leadership Development Awards, and Service Leadership Awards to help students actively benefit communities. Leadership Immersion Treks, funded by the College and donations from the 五月天视频community, have also taken over 80 students to national conferences to learn from women innovators in business, policymaking, and nonprofit work.
鈥淎s an economics major鈥攁 field historically dominated by men鈥擨鈥檝e used my leadership skills and networking to grow my confidence,鈥� says Riya Hariharan 鈥�25 of her trek experience. 鈥淭he Laspa Center has helped me do that.鈥�
Disparities indeed persist worldwide. Women and genderdiverse leaders, especially from historically excluded backgrounds, remain underrepresented in most industries. Pay gaps are still too wide and senior leadership promotion opportunities are too few.
Still, the last decade has brought tangible momentum. According to 2015鈥�2024 data from the PEW Research Center, women steering Fortune 500 companies has more than doubled and the number serving on boards has increased by 50 percent. In 2023, the American Council on Education reported that one in three college presidents are women, and a 2024 study from the Congressional Research Service noted that women now occupy more political offices worldwide than ever before.
For many of these leaders, their path from aspiring changemakers to paladins of progress started at college. At Scripps, the Laspa Center is that mediator between classroom and community, nurturing new leaders who know that building bridges is as valuable as breaking new ground. It鈥檚 a fitting mindset for the next decade.
鈥淪cripps鈥� community is unique. We exist in an environment of rare beauty, yet have the grit to do what is hard and necessary while holding opposing views. That shared purpose, drive for excellence, and respect for learning make us strong,鈥� says Maldonado. 鈥淎nd from strong places come great leaders.鈥�