NASHVILLE, TENN. — Lipscomb University has launched a new Rural Leadership Scholars Program and announced its first partnership is with the University of Tennessee at Martin.
The program an initiative designed to develop leaders across Tennessee with a particular focus on those from the state’s 70 rural counties as investment in leadership development and education in the state.
“This is really, really important work,” said L. Randolph Lowry, Lipscomb University president, at a signing ceremony to formalize the partnership. “We as an institution need to be educating individuals who will go into the public sector, tackle those challenges that frankly can’t be tackled by anyone else. Lipscomb University and the University of Tennessee at Martin is one example of that and seeing what together we can do for the state of Tennessee is pretty powerful.”
Keith Carver, chancellor of the University of Tennessee at Martin, said among the most important considerations in life are people, relationships and experiences.
“What people are you surrounding yourself with? How are you pouring into those people with relationships, and with experiences, what are you spending your time doing,” Carver asked the crowd gathered for the celebration. “When I think about this collaboration and what the University of Tennessee at Martin is doing in the 21 rural counties in and around west Tennessee and what Lipscomb is doing in terms of leadership, service and advocacy with the curriculum and this program. The merger of these two programs where we take academic study of leadership applying it it’s taking two great things and making a beautiful partnership. We are extremely excited about this and to see the impact that this will have.”
As part of the partnership, students earn their undergraduate degree at UT Martin and a Master of Arts degree in leadership and public service from Lipscomb University’s College of Leadership & Public Service. Students who agree to return to an officially designated rural community in Tennessee after completing their education will receive support and scholarships that will greatly reduce the cost of the last two years of the undergraduate degree as well as the master’s degree. A select group of students from UT Martin will complete their undergraduate education at UT Martin and then complete a Master of Arts in Leadership and Public Service at Lipscomb University with an emphasis in rural initiatives. As part of their master’s studies, students will continue to live in their rural community and serve their community through projects and work. The goal is to produce master’s degree-educated rural leaders who will commit their careers to developing the rural segments of the state.
“Leadership is difficult and only slightly more difficult in rural communities,” said Jake Bynum, mayor, Weakley County, Tennessee, and student in Lipscomb’s Master of Arts in Leadership and Public Service program. “The challenges that our rural communities face are like nothing that we see in a lot of areas. With 70 counties across the state that are primarily rural counties, developing leaders in those areas is vitally important. It’s my hope that those communities will encourage their local leaders to participate in this program to give their communities a better understanding of how they can be served more successfully. I’m proud that these two institutions who have understood leadership development for years now have made an even larger commitment to the growth of that leadership development.”
The first cohort of students will enter the Master of Arts program at Lipscomb in fall 2020. The program, which may be completed in one year, facilitates the building of critical skills in leadership, communication and conflict resolution. Courses will focus on innovative leadership in rural and statewide settings, data analysis, connecting the community to resources, negotiation and conflict management, working productively in cross-sector settings, communicating to diverse interest groups and budget management among other topics. Students will also study with and be mentored by top leaders from across Tennessee and will develop a statewide support system and network of resources. Part of the course of study will also include developing an initiative that is built around the needs of a particular community and then implementing it. The program will be offered in a flexible format for working professionals. After students complete their studies, Lipscomb will continue to support graduates of the program with professional development opportunities and a statewide network of resources.
College of Leadership & Public Service is where Tennessee turns for leadership. Over the past decade, Lipscomb University has built a group of institutes that serve the common good and support innovative solutions. These institutes are housed in this college and include the Institute for Conflict Management, the Institute for Law, Justice & Society, the Institute for Sustainable Practice and the Nelson & Sue Andrews Institute for Civic Leadership. Each offers graduate degree programming in addition to other initiatives including certificate programs, Rule 31 training and more. The college is also home to signature program Leadership Tennessee. This unique initiative provides collaborative learning and dialogue spanning the state’s three grand divisions, issue-specific education for demonstrated leaders, diverse representation of participants and opportunities to affect change. The college offers programs of study in pre-law, public service, nonprofit management, corporate social justice, government, sustainability, leadership and public service and urban studies.
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