Background and Purpose
Throughout its history, the Haas Center has worked to foster community among student leaders and student-led service organizations engaged in diverse public service efforts. The center provides resources that enhance both the quality of student service engagement and the learning derived from it. Leadership programming promotes ethical and effective service and positive personal interactions, while providing a welcoming physical space that contributes to community building. The Haas Center’s goal in all its leadership efforts is to develop thoughtful, skilled, and reflective practitioners equipped to effect social change.
In 2005, the Haas Center launched the Public Service Leadership Program (PSLP). PSLP empowers students with a passion for the environment, health care, conflict resolution, and numerous other issues to build their knowledge of public service leadership theory, become reflective practitioners, and synthesize their leadership learning. The program begins with a two-unit course, Introduction to Public Service Leadership, and continues with skill-building workshops, interviews with community leaders, cohort leadership roundtable reflections, leadership learning plans, mentor involvement, and self-assessment exercises.
Objectives
- Facilitate leadership learning and skill-building for public service student leaders.
- Develop a strong community of peer leaders who learn with and from each other throughout their Stanford experiences.
- Provide high quality public service preparation to student-led service organizations so that they can provide more intentional, ethical, and effective public service.
