APCU Leadership Development Institute
The 2025-26 APCU Leadership Development Institute provided opportunities for aspiring leaders at APCU member institutions to evaluate their individual skills, gifts, and calling as professionals against the leadership needs of a rapidly evolving higher education landscape while also exploring of the role of faith-based leadership in the Presbyterian context.
The Institute is of great value to faculty and administrators who have demonstrated leadership potential and are interested in broader leadership roles in areas such as academic affairs, enrollment management, student affairs, student services, marketing, finance, advancement, and/or athletics.
To facilitate the APCU Leadership Development Institute, the APCU has teamed-up with Carnegie Higher Education, a nationally-recognized higher education consulting firm dedicated to institutional thriving and the development of effective leaders. Carnegie provides experienced faculty who have provided leadership training and coaching to hundreds of senior administrators on church-related college campuses.
Ghandi reminded each of us to “learn as if you were to live forever.” College faculty and administrators should embrace this notion—forever striving to become the best, most able leaders they can be.
John Roush
President Emeritus,
Centre College
Components of the APCU Leadership Development Institute:
Opening Workshop, November 19 – 21, 2025: A set of in-person interactive sessions designed to assess individual leadership styles & growth opportunities, examine external marketplace trends and threats, explore traits of thriving Presbyterian institutions, and address the demands inherent to higher education leadership. Individual leadership roadmaps will be developed and discussed through a peer workshop format.
Online Symposiums, December 2025 – May 2026: A series of six monthly webinars that provide insight into key leadership and higher ed topics such as the executive search process, institutional governance models, the effective use of data, and building a successful leadership team.
Closing Workshop, May 20 – 21, 2026: A concluding in-person summit to discuss and evaluate individual roadmap progress, define next steps for ongoing leadership development, and celebrate the completion of the cohort experience with peers!
Building on the Success of our Previous Leadership Institutes
Candidates are evaluated by the Institute faculty and APCU staff and notified if a place has been reserved for them. Each institution nominating a participant is asked to pay a $500 registration fee. Additional information about the Institute is then shared along with the reservation link for the host hotel, the Hampton Inn & Suites in Decatur, Georgia.
Funded in part by a generous grant from the Council of Independent Colleges, the 2025-26 Leadership Institute marked the fourth consecutive year the APCU has offered this comprehensive program for aspiring leaders at member schools. Over 90% of the participants in previous Institutes indicated they would definitely recommend the Institute to colleagues. Additionally, previous participants cite the emphasis on making a “mission-driven difference” as a key reason to participate in the Institute. Here are some of comments from participants in the 2024-25 Institute:
- Great, fantastic! So good for networking and learning about other leaders and the current landscape of higher education.
- I’ve valued this program more than most that I have attended. It truly develops you as a professional by providing tools and knowledge about the industry while also keeping a focus on individual goals.
- It forces self-reflection and awareness, while doing so within the space that brings together others from higher education to share in the challenges and opportunities.
- The professional, individualized focus on me was top shelf. This felt like a carefully curated, thoughtful approach.
- Absolutely recommend. Great people. Great ideas. Great mix of encouragement and challenge. Top-notch and totally worth the investment of time and resources.
Nominations for the 2026-27 Leadership Institute will be accepted beginning in July 2026. The Institute is limited to 25 participants and each of these individuals must be nominated by his/her president.