Hidden costs and commitments: Leadership, social class, and experiential learning

Area of Science:

• Higher Education
• Leadership Studies
• Sociology of Education

Background:

• Leadership development is often confined to traditional on- and off-campus settings.
• Experiential leadership learning opportunities are not equally accessible to all socioeconomic groups.
• Socioeconomic disparities can limit access to leadership development programs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose strategies for increasing accessibility of leadership development to poor and working-class students.
• To explore methods for integrating existing student leadership experiences from non-traditional contexts.
• To enhance the recognition and application of informal leadership learning.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative analysis of existing literature on leadership development and social class.
• Exploration of pedagogical approaches to validate and leverage informal learning.
• Case study examples of integrating community and family leadership roles into academic contexts.

Main Results:

• Identifying diverse, often unrecognized, leadership skills within family and community contexts.
• Demonstrating the potential for curriculum and program adaptation to include these experiences.
• Highlighting the benefits of inclusive leadership education for student empowerment and retention.

Conclusions:

• Leadership education must broaden its scope to encompass informal and community-based experiences.
• Accessible leadership development requires acknowledging and valuing the lived experiences of diverse student populations.
• Integrating varied leadership contexts can foster more equitable and effective leadership learning.