By Ciara Stone
The LeaderShape Institute is a FREE four-day experience (May 12-15, 2026) that offers students a chance to get out of their comfort zone, change the way they look at the world and become a leader. Students learn about working in high-performance teams, dealing with change and chaos, decision-making in ethical dilemmas, and understanding personal values and the values of others. Read more about Ciara’s experience:
To be completely honest with you I didn’t know that the LeaderShape Institute even existed. But the second I heard about it I knew I wanted to go. I had been loving all of my leadership classes here at Boise State so much that I wanted to do anything and everything I could to stay as involved with it as possible. So LeaderShape seemed like the perfect opportunity to do that. Besides wanting to stay involved with what I loved, I also decided to go because I wanted to step outside my comfort zone and go meet more people like me. People who still have the desire to be a leader and change the world, people who still see the good in others and can be optimistic about life and change even though adulthood tries to beat that out of you. That’s what I was hoping to find at the LeaderShape Institute. Luckily, that’s exactly what happened!
LeaderShape was a profound experience for me. I learned amazing things and met amazing people. I’ve never been surrounded by so many inspiring people who came from all different walks of life in one room. It was eye opening. Everyone there was so different and yet we all felt like family by the end of the experience. I learned so much about others, not just through the lessons and activities, but simply by sitting with people I wouldn’t normally be around for a few days with no distractions and just talking to each other on a human to human level. It was a nice reminder to me that we all have a lot more in common than we think.
On the last day, there’s an amazing activity where everyone gets to create a headline for the news that their dream came true. We put all of our headline posters around the room and then got to walk around and read each other’s stories. The dreams varied everywhere from “First fully gluten free grocery store opens in Idaho” to “Health care now free to everyone” to “Nerodivergent students now have better access to the care they need”. I mean, you name it and it was there. It was an amazing experience to go around and see all the possibilities for positive change in the world.
I left LeaderShape with a refreshing optimistic perspective on life. I was reminded that there are good people in this world who are striving to be and do good things. It doesn’t have to be an amazing, special person to make these big changes. These amazing things start with us. All you have to do is have a vision, believe in that vision, and with that motivation, anyone can make a difference. I was reminded that your first step to making those differences is not only to believe in yourself but to believe in each other.
LeaderShape was also great because it was an amazing first stepping stone to preparing me for my future career. It taught me so many valuable skills to take into my future such as teamwork, active listening, communication, and the importance of transparency. I learned how to better understand and work with those who are different from me. I learned how to better communicate my needs and how to better understand other’s needs around me. Not only did I learn great skills for my future career, but I met amazing people that gave me their contact information so that I could reach out to them if I needed anything. Recommendation letters, advice, help finding a job or nailing down my interests. The leaders there are so amazing and they want to do anything they can to help you succeed.
More information on LeaderShape:
Apply now for the LeaderShape Institute! This experience will challenge you to lead with integrity while working towards a vision grounded in your deepest values. We hope that you will take advantage of this great opportunity to further enhance your personal leadership skills and our campus community.
Over 500 students from Boise State have participated in the past and over 78,000 students have participated internationally across 50+ colleges since the program’s creation. Upon return from the LeaderShape Institute, students at Boise State have shared that this was one of the most impactful programs at Boise State for personal growth. Students also shared that they felt more energized by their organizations, motivated to pursue new projects, and identified some takeaway skills to navigate conflict, challenges, and problem solving. The capacity to lead is a skill that employers say they want from recent college graduates regardless of their major.
The application closes on Wednesday, April 15th. Learn more on the LeaderShape Institute website.