Congratulations to SMU’s own Dr. K.C. Mmeje, Vice President for Student Affairs, on being selected as an inaugural Aspen Index Senior Fellow with the Aspen Institute! 93 community stakeholders, youth, educators, and scholars have come together to advance the future of youth leadership development.
Impact Fellows representing a diverse mosaic of sectors, geographies, and areas of expertise will advance an urgent agenda focused on the research, interventions, and strategies necessary to accelerate the access to and quality of youth leadership programs nationally. The goal: Lift youth exposure to high-impact leadership programs above 50% over the next 5 years.
Impact Fellows will aid in the development, optimization, and beta-testing of the Aspen Index along with co-creating the supporting learning architecture to ensure its success. This work dove-tails with major reports to be released on the future of youth leadership research and practice. Together, the Aspen
Institute is working with Impact Fellows to create a movement of greater access to and quality of youth leadership programs.
“I am humbled by my selection as an ASPEN Senior Impact Fellow with the Aspen Institute Leadership Development Index. Together, the Aspen Institute is working with Impact Fellows to create a movement of greater access to and quality of youth leadership programs. I am eager to advance this important work.”
Dr. K.C. Mmeje, Vice President for Student Affairs
The Aspen Institute Leadership Development Index (Aspen Index) is a digital tool that measures key leadership capacities to accelerate personal and professional growth. Leveraging 20 years of ground-breaking, peer-reviewed empirical research, the Aspen Index assesses individual capacities, maps team assets, and evaluates program impact—each with the option for additional 360 feedback. By comparing an individual’s scores with national and career-specific benchmarks—and by breaking down the distinct knowledge, behaviors, attitudes, and skills that cultivate effective leadership—the Aspen Index provides a strategic roadmap to elevate one’s potential and deepen one’s impact.
The Aspen Institute is a global nonprofit organization committed to realizing a free, just, and equitable society. Founded in 1949, the Institute drives change through dialogue, leadership, and action to help solve the most important challenges facing the United States and the world. Headquartered in Washington, DC, the Institute has a campus in Aspen, Colorado, and an international network of partners. For more information, please visit www.aspeninstitute.org.