Athletic leaders and student government leaders were present but the vast majority of Christian schools were letting (leadership) happen by default.” [1]
John Maxwell, in various surveys, found that ten percent of leaders rose to leadership as a result of their natural gifting, five percent as a result of a crisis, and eighty-five percent because of the influence of another leader.
Most schools include, somewhere in their documentation and vision thinking, the importance of developing leaders. However there appears to be a lot of research and anecdotal evidence to show that this enrichment is often not carried out in very intentional and purposeful ways.
At a fundamental level we can define leadership as “taking initiative to serve”. Using that definition, leadership can be developed in every person to some degree. There will be some students who, as a consequence of God’s gifting and the character and personality that He develops within them, will be highly effective leaders.
We, as school leaders, must develop a culture where “taking the initiative to serve” is a foundational norm.
We must provide good mentoring opportunities to enable leadership development.
We must help our students to understand that “taking the initiative to serve” is very much a part of being made in the image of God. The Triune God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit have always loved and served one another. It is therefore part of every persons created DNA. It is why students find satisfaction and joy when they Lead to Serve.
How are we developing a culture that develops student leadership?
[1] Developing Student Leadership: Is it Intentional at Your School? John W. Storey, EdD, (One-time director of the ACSI Mid-Atlantic Region.)