Undergraduate Leadership Courses

PLLC offers five experiential undergraduate courses in partnership with UAlberta host faculties, which are open to undergrads in any program. In these unique classes, students actively apply course content via creative activities and facilitated discussion with the support of a graduate or law student Teaching Fellow, in addition to the course's instructor. Assignments and activities are often based on real-life situations, current events and innovative research that engage students to problem-solve and reflect on their leadership practice.

Our undergraduate leadership courses include:

* Foundations of Leadership (INT D 301) is a pre-requisite for the following classes.

Study Leadership Abroad in June 2022

Berlin landscape at night with text reading e3: language study, internships, academic coursework

Join Dr. Cristina Stasia in Berlin from June 6 - 29, 2022 for INT D 301/325: Leadership on Location! 

Go abroad and learn about leadership through field trips, experiential learning and seminar discussion.  Pack your own leadership failures and challenges and use an adaptive leadership framework to understand them while deepening your understanding of what it means to lead.

Register with e3

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Popular Representations of Leadership (INT D 135) Faculty of Arts

Instructor: Cristina Stasia, PhD | Director of Leadership Training and Development, Peter Lougheed Leadership College

This course uses various media genres to explore both dominant understandings of leadership as well as shifts in those understandings. Exploring film, stage, television, and video games, we will analyze the way that popular culture is both informed by, and informs, popular theories and public understanding of leadership. Situating content within its historical and sociopolitical context, we will analyze how various texts inform public understandings of what a leader looks like, how they should act, and what is at stake in following them.

Next Section: Tuesdays/Thursdays from 12:30-1:50 pm in Fall 2021

View on the Calendar | Enrol on Beartracks

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Foundations of Leadership (INT D 301) Faculty of Arts

* pre-requisite for other PLLC courses

Instructor: Cristina Stasia, PhD | Director of Leadership Training and Development, Peter Lougheed Leadership College

What does it take to lead? Foundations of Leadership covers the theory and practice of leadership through case studies, innovative assignments and experiential activities. Develop your leadership skills, analyze your personal leadership challenges and explore pressing issues while working with interdisciplinary students from across campus. 

Next Sections: Wednesdays from 5:30-8:30 pm in Fall 2021 and Tuesdays from 5:30-8:30 pm in Winter 2022

View on the Calendar | Enrol on Beartracks

Travel abroad to learn about leadership on location! This class is also offered in Berlin in June 2022 with Dr. Stasia as part of the e3 program. 


Engage in Experiential Learning in INT D 301

  • The 2018-19 Foundations of Leadership class worked with a professional production team and connected with stakeholders across the U of A campuses to create #UAlbertaCares, a video series highlighting mental health challenges and strategies for various U of A audiences.
  • See an example of a Foundations of Leadership lesson plan on Teaching Fellow Dan Engelhardt's portfolio.

Screenshot of a map of Alberta with checkpoints of various categories

  • Foundations of Leadership students assembled an alternate leadership map of Alberta (see right) and a non-prototypical leadership map of Treaty Six Terrority as part of a project to research and recognize lesser-known leaders and their impact.

In addition to course content, students develop five Student Leadership Competencies in INT D 301: Creating Change, Problem Solving, Self-Development, Self-Understanding, and Verbal Communication.
How We Teach Leadership

 

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Leadership for Social Innovation (INT D 306) Faculty of ALES

* co-requisite with INT D 301, allowing students to take both courses in the same semester

Instructor: Gordon Gow, PhD | Professor and Academic Director, Communications and Technology Graduate Program (MACT), Faculty of Arts 

Have you ever wondered what a wicked problem is? Are you interested in finding creative, ecological approaches to making a difference? Wondering where to start? In this course, you will explore the concept of wicked problems, and research socially innovative ideas to solve them using an approach called ecological leadership. You will hear from those who have been effective in turning a seed of an idea into an innovative solution. You will learn these skills: how to research an innovative idea, develop an effective proposal, and pitch that idea.

Next Section: Mondays from 5:30-8:30 pm in Winter 2022

 View on the Calendar | Enrol on Beartracks

Outstanding INT D 306 Projects

In the Winter 2020 section of Leadership for Social Innovation class, students created socially innovative proposals as part of their final projects. See some of the projects below and get a feel for what you could learn in INT D 306.

An Accessibility Map to the University of Alberta
University of Alberta students and other visitors that require mobility accommodations have greater difficulty navigating campus and may experience anxiety in their attempts. Geneva Coulter proposes making a UAlberta campus accessibility map that offers routes and accessible washrooms, entrances, elevators, among other accessible features. Learn more in her pitch recorded on YouTube.
Shop Honest
Online shopping has created new opportunities, both for the worse and the better. Many consumers don't understand the implications of consumption, like the effects of fast fashion on the environment. Allie Quigley proposes using a browser extension to collect data on online consumption and educate online shoppers to make more sustainable choices. Read her proposal for more information.
The UAlberta Glocal Student Group
Studies show that students on large university campuses, such as the University of Alberta, often feel lonely or lack a sense of belonging. To connect local and international students at the U of A, Danielle Bailey-Heelan and Nicholas Vankka propose Glocal, a student group where participants can make friends and share their culture. Find out more in their pitch on YouTube.
Think! Don't Overdrink
Binge drinking is a harmful practice, but studies show that undergraduate students, like U of A students living in Lister Hall, often engage in it. Basel Moukaskas and Julia Craig propose activities at the start of the year that educate students on the risks of binge drinking and offers alternatives to making friends and having fun. View their pitch on YouTube to learn more.

In addition to course content, students develop five Student Leadership Competencies in INT D 306: Collaboration, Creating Change, Diversity, Problem Solving, Self-Understanding, Social Responsibility, and Verbal Communication.
How We Teach Leadership

 

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Innovation, Science and Leadership (INT D 406) Faculty of Science

Instructor: Torah Kachur, PhD | Science Instructor, Faculty of Science

The challenges the world faces⏤from pandemics to climate change⏤are fundamentally scientific problems with scientific solutions. Simply fixing these issues with science is not possible as there are political, economic and ethical factors to consider as well. If diving deep into global issues and figuring out evidence-based solutions sounds like the type of leader you want to be, this is the course for you. This group-work course is focused on discovery learning and improving communication skills while looking at global problems from diverse angles.

Next Section: Wednesdays from 5:30-8:30 pm in Winter 2022

 View on the Calendar | Enrol on Beartracks

Learn Evidence-Based Practice in INT D 406

The Winter 2020 section of Innovation, Science and Leadership culminated in an iTEAM Challenge, where students learned to design and carry out a systematic review of evidence before making recommendations related to a pressing environmental and/or social issue. See three exceptional examples on our YouTube channel:

edmonton skyline at night with overlaid text: housing heroes building the way home
Housing Heroes
Mohamed, Emily, Anna and Arjun investigate the lack of proper infrastructure and policy to support adults who experience homelessness and substance abuse.
black and white thumbnails of five young women with the title Women in Black
Women in Black

Christy, Julie, Kayla, Nicole and Xiaoyu propose theatre-based interventions to improve the mental health of Indigenous male youth populations in Canada.

title page image reads fentanyl test kits: improving the healthcare of canadian drug users in response to synthetic opiods by i-team Preventanyl including campion, mason, robert and martin in the INT D 406 class
Preventanyl

Campion, Martin, Mason and Robert investigate the emergence of Fentanyl and the adultering of the illicit drug market, and they pitch possible solutions.

Slideshow presentation reads current state of gender equality in edmonton with a graph showing a disproportionately low number of councillors compared to provincial representatives

Scholars select topics that matter to them, like gender equality in Edmonton's City Council. Click to view the complete presentation.

 

In the Winter 2021 section of INT D 406, scholars focussed their reviews and recommendations on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Allie, John, Nicholas and Nitya selected goal #5, gender equality, specifically in relation to Edmonton's City Council. After research, including interviews with female City Councillors, they determined that imposter syndrome was a top reason preventing young women from pursuing political participation. The group then proposed a number of initatives to reduce imposter syndrome and help women see themselves in those roles, eventually increasing gender equality in government.

In addition to course content, students develop five Student Leadership Competencies in INT D 406: Collaboration, Creating Change, Diversity, and Social Responsibility.
How We Teach Leadership

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Workshops in Leadership (INT D 407) Alberta School of Business

Instructor: Heather Caltagirone, PhD | Sessional Instructor | Assistant Deputy Minister, Alberta Education

The purpose of this course is to increase understanding of leadership and skill in exercising leadership roles. We will examine critical leadership aspects from a workshop point of view. You will be asked to contemplate the ideas presented, reflect on who you are as an individual and a leader, and how you might hone your repertoire of leadership skills considering the ideas presented. Integrated will be information on skills such as team building, mentoring, managing conflict, delegating, managing decision-making, creative problem solving, and stress management. This is accomplished by classroom learnings, workshops on topic areas, deliverables and supplementary readings and research to assist you in developing a comprehensive understanding.

Next Section: Mondays from 5:30-8:30 pm in Fall 2021 (offered via remote course delivery)

 View on the Calendar | Enrol on Beartracks

Learning With and From One Another in INT D 407

quote on leadership from Northouse

Scholars learn with and from one another, like in this class presentation on leadership and authority. Click to view the complete presentation.

In the Fall 2021 section of INT D 407, Aiman, Kaitlyn, Maite, Nicholas, and Salma presented "The Art of Influence without Authority." They led their classmates through an investigation of social media influencers, discussing the use of expertise, likeability and relatability to connect with their audience. By deeply engaging with course concepts in relation to a topic of their choosing, scholars gain meaningful lessons that they can apply outside the classroom. 

In addition to course content, students develop five Student Leadership Competencies in INT D 407: Creating Change, Receiving Feedback, Responding to Change, and Verbal Communication.
How We Teach Leadership