Teaching Leadership With Intention

I recently had the opportunity to teach a session on running effective meetings with students in Brimmer’s Leadership Institute. As I prepared for the class, I found myself thinking not only about agendas, room setup, and discussion protocols, but also about the larger work we have done as a school to be intentional about leadership development. Too often, leadership in schools is treated as something students either have or do not have. At Brimmer, we are working from a different belief: leadership is taught, practiced, and strengthened over time. 

 

The session itself focused on a skill that sounds simple, but in practice requires care and preparation. Running an effective meeting is not about gathering people in a room and hoping for a productive conversation. It requires clarity of purpose, thoughtful planning, and attention to detail that shape how people participate. As we met in the Wright Conference Room during a lunch period where students could be socializing with friends, I talked with students about the importance of planning, setting a clear agenda, thinking intentionally about the setup of the room, being transparent about goals, respecting people’s time, how to navigate challenging moments in a meeting, and considering the kind of feedback and discussion you hope to generate. We also talked about follow-through. Students walked away understanding that strong leaders do not just facilitate conversation in the moment; they help a group leave with clarity, direction, and a shared sense of next steps. 

 

What struck me during the session was how naturally this lesson connected to the kind of leadership we want students to develop more broadly. Leadership is not simply about speaking first, holding a title, or being the person out in front. More often, it is about preparation, listening, responsiveness, humility, and the ability to help others do their best work. Those are skills that matter in school, in relationships, in civic life, and, increasingly, in the modern workplace. 

 

Research continues to reinforce the value of these skills. In its December 10, 2024, report, Views of Job Training and Workplace Skills in 2024, Pew Research Center found that workers view communication, interpersonal skills, and critical thinking as among the most important capacities for success in today’s economy. Similarly, in The Future of Leadership Development, published in the Harvard Business Review, Moldoveanu and Narayandas argue that leadership development should be intentional, cultivated over time, and not left to chance or reserved for only a small group of future leaders. Together, these perspectives point to an important conclusion: the skills that help students become thoughtful leaders in school are deeply connected to the skills that will help them thrive in college, careers, and the communities they will one day lead. 

 

That is one reason we have invested in multiple pathways for leadership development at Brimmer. The Leadership Institute brings students together for monthly sessions focused on different leadership topics and invites participation from students who currently hold leadership roles as well as those who want to grow in this area. Gator Aides serves a dual purpose, pairing older students with ninth graders while also teaching the habits of consistency, empathy, and responsibility that strong mentors and leaders need. Our Peer Mentoring program focuses on academic leadership, helping students learn how to support classmates without simply giving answers. That work asks students to listen carefully, ask thoughtful questions, and guide others with patience and care. Through Student Athlete Leadership Training (SALT), students explore what it means to lead on a team, including how to navigate conflict, communicate clearly, and respond to the kinds of situations that captains and teammates regularly face. Club leaders have the opportunity to shape the community around an area of passion, while Admissions Ambassadors help welcome prospective students and families and learn how important presence, hospitality, and thoughtful communication can be. 

 

Each of these programs allows for students with different interests and skill sets to develop as leaders at Brimmer. What connects all of these programs is a shared belief that leadership should not be left to chance. Students do not become effective leaders simply because they are handed a title or a responsibility. They grow through practice. They grow through reflection. They grow when adults take the time to name the skills involved, provide feedback, and create authentic opportunities to lead. 

 

When families look at a school, they often begin with the academic program, the arts, the athletics, and the range of opportunities available to students. Those things matter deeply. But so does the question of how a school helps young people grow into thoughtful, capable, and compassionate leaders. At Brimmer, that work happens in classrooms, on teams, in clubs, through mentorship, and in leadership training sessions like the one we held last week. Leadership, like other skills, is not something we hope students will simply pick up along the way. It is something we teach with intention.