Spartan Leadership Challenge
The Spartan Leadership Challenge is OLCE’s signature leadership development journey—designed to empower you with the skills, experiences, and confidence to lead with purpose. Rooted in the social change model of leadership development, this university-wide program connects classroom learning with real-world leadership through interactive workshops, service projects, and reflection.
Whether you’re just starting out or ready to take your leadership to the next level, each level of the Spartan Leadership Challenge supports your growth in areas that matter: communication, teamwork, critical thinking, and ethical decision-making. Along the way, you’ll build a powerful leadership portfolio that highlights your impact and helps you stand out in today’s competitive job market.
By completing the Spartan Leadership Challenge, you’ll not only become a stronger leader, you’ll graduate career-ready, community-minded, and fully prepared to be a changemaker in any field!
All students who complete the Spartan Leadership Challenge will receive a medallion that can be worn at graduation; each experience comes with its own medallion and certificate!
Bronze Leadership Challenge
Silver Leadership Challenge
Gold Leadership Challenge
Spartan Leadership Challenge: Bronze Experience
Start your leadership journey here.
The Bronze Experience is your gateway to discovering who you are as a leader and how you can make a difference. As the foundational level of the Spartan Leadership Challenge, Bronze is built on the Social Change Model and empowers you to explore your personal values, develop your leadership identity, and begin leading with purpose.
Through five interactive workshops, hands-on service in the community, and participation in professional development opportunities, you’ll engage in meaningful reflection and build the skills that prepare you for future leadership on campus, in your career, and in your community.
By completing Bronze, you’re not only advancing your leadership potential—you’re also completing the foundational level of the Spartan Experience, aligning your growth with UNCG’s leadership and civic engagement competencies.
Bronze Experience Learning Outcomes
- Students will identify their core personal values and reflect on how those values inform ethical decision-making and leadership practice.
(Aligns with Spartan Experience Outcome #1 and Workshop 2)
- Students will demonstrate increased self-awareness of their personal and social identities and how these identities influence their leadership style and interactions with others.
(Aligns with Spartan Experience Outcome #2 and Workshop 3)
- Students will analyze leadership as a collaborative, values-based process for positive social change.
(Aligns with Spartan Experience Outcome #2 and Workshop 1; rooted in the Social Change Model)
- Students will engage meaningfully in community-based service and reflect on their role as active contributors to their communities.
(Aligns with Spartan Experience Outcome #3, Workshop 4, and service requirement)
- Students will create a personal leadership vision and identify goals for continued development as ethical and civic-minded leaders.
(Aligns with Spartan Experience Outcome #4 and Workshop 5)
Spartan Leadership Challenge: Silver Experience
Lead with purpose. Serve with impact.
The Silver Experience is your next step in the Spartan Leadership Challenge—a powerful opportunity to transform your leadership potential into confident, community-centered action. Rooted in The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership, this intermediate experience is designed for students ready to sharpen their leadership skills, elevate their influence, and make meaningful contributions to the world around them.
Through one-on-one leadership coaching, sustained service at a single community organization, and active participation in development experiences, you’ll put your leadership into motion. You’ll also complete the Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI), create a visual representation of your leadership journey, and share your growth at the Silver Expo.
Silver is where you move from learning about leadership to living it. By completing this experience, you’ll meet the intermediate level of the Spartan Experience and strengthen your career readiness, ethical leadership, and community engagement.
Silver Experience Learning Outcomes
- Students will deepen their understanding of personal values and demonstrate how these values guide ethical leadership decisions and behaviors.
(Aligns with Spartan Experience Outcome #1 and the “Model the Way” practice)
- Students will strengthen their leadership efficacy by applying the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership to real-world service and team settings.
(Aligns with Spartan Experience Outcome #2 and the LPI/Coaching Sessions)
- Students will engage in sustained, purposeful community service and articulate the leadership impact of their contributions.
(Aligns with Spartan Experience Outcome #3 and 30-hour service requirement)
- Students will participate in personal and professional development experiences that challenge them to reflect, grow, and lead with vision and integrity.
(Aligns with Spartan Experience Outcomes #2 and #4 and 15-hour personal/professional development requirement) - Students will communicate their leadership journey and growth by reflecting on their strengths, challenges, and contributions during the Silver Expo.
(Aligns with Spartan Experience Outcome #4 and Silver Expo visual presentation)
Spartan Leadership Challenge: Gold Experience
Lead with confidence. Make a lasting impact.
The Gold Experience is the pinnacle of the Spartan Leadership Challenge—crafted for student leaders ready to turn passion into purpose. Designed for those who have completed Bronze and Silver, this advanced experience invites you to fully activate your strengths, lead complex projects, and leave a legacy of change.
Over the course of one academic year, you’ll partner with a community organization to design and implement a service project with real-world impact. You’ll engage in deep reflection through monthly activities, participate in leadership seminars that push your thinking, and collaborate in the Gold Case Study Competition. With CliftonStrengths coaching as your foundation, you’ll learn to lead authentically, build strong teams, and apply your talents in meaningful ways.
From strengths-based leadership to community-centered service, the Gold Experience prepares you to lead at the next level—on campus, in your career, and in the world. By completing this experience, you’ll fulfill the advanced level of the Spartan Experience, demonstrating your readiness to drive change wherever you go.
Gold Experience Learning Outcomes
- Students will apply their top CliftonStrengths to lead authentically, collaborate effectively, and make values-aligned decisions in complex leadership situations.
(Aligns with Spartan Experience Outcome #1 and CliftonStrengths coaching)
- Students will demonstrate increased leadership capacity by designing and implementing a service project that addresses a real community need in partnership with an OLCE-approved organization.
(Aligns with Spartan Experience Outcome #2 and the 60-hour service project)
- Students will engage in advanced reflection and seminar-based learning to critically evaluate their leadership practice and civic identity.
(Aligns with Spartan Experience Outcome #2 and monthly reflections + Gold Seminars)
- Students will contribute meaningfully to community impact efforts through sustained engagement, while articulating how their leadership influences both individual and collective outcomes.
(Aligns with Spartan Experience Outcome #3 and Outcome #4; community service and leadership application) - Students will curate and present a professional leadership portfolio that highlights their growth, strengths, and readiness to lead change in their careers and communities. (Aligns with Spartan Experience Outcome #4 and the leadership portfolio + case study competition)
