Firmly believing that leaders are made not born, Secretary Leon E. Panetta established the Leadership Seminar in 1999. This year again, this first-of-its-kind program, included student body leaders elected by the twenty-three different campuses within the California State University system, a student leader representative from CSSA and a student trustee from the California State University Chancellor’s Office.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 2020 Leadership Seminar in its twenty-first year was conducted through web-conferencing connecting the twenty-five enrolled elected student body leaders to nationally renowned speakers who shared their insights on leadership from a variety of different perspectives in different fields. The program, held from Monday, June 15 through Friday, June 19, provided a unique opportunity for students to interact with this diverse group of prominent leaders, learn from their experiences, and engage in dialogue about current policy issues and leadership challenges in the 21st century.

U.S. Representative Joshua Gottheimer (D-NJ)
U.S. Representative Thomas Reed (R-NY)
U.S. Representative Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) as Moderator

• Leadership in the Military: From Commitment to Command

Admiral Bill McRaven, U.S. Navy (Ret.)

• Leadership in Education: Developing and Delivering Life-Long Learning Skills

President Janet Napolitano, University of California System and Former Secretary of Homeland Security

• Community Leadership: Becoming Effective Change Makers

Fernando Torres-Gil, Ph.D., U.S. Assistant Secretary on Aging, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

• Leadership and Race: How to Develop Leadership that Contributes to Social Justice

Chris Womack, Executive Vice President Southern Company

Students further completed sixteen hours of course work by submitting written deliverables based on the lessons they learned from each speaker. Students also made two presentations along with a written report on the Panetta Institute’s 2020 Youth Civic Engagement Survey, and a final written leadership proposal wherein student body officers described their goals for the 2020-2021 school year and the methods they planned to use to achieve those goals. Upon successful completion of the program, participating student body leaders received three units of academic credit and a Certificate of Completion issued by the Panetta Institute. The Leadership Seminar is a California State University accredited course. The total number of student participants to date is 549.