More than 30 students began their Florida State University experience a week early to hone their leadership skills and engage with the Tallahassee community.  

 Now in its 22nd year, FSU’s Service Leadership Seminar (SLS), hosted by the Center for Leadership & Service, aims to inspire and enable participants to create positive, sustainable change in their local, national or global communities. The seminar equips participants to discover opportunities for community engagement, develop leadership skills and self-awareness, and create an atmosphere in which students, staff and community partners can effectively collaborate. 

Erin Sylvester Philpot, program director for leadership at the center, said SLS helps to orient and welcome new students to campus through the lens of engaging with the Tallahassee community.  

“They discover more about who they are, how they can make Florida State work best for their interest and goals, and how they can find fulfillment through becoming leaders in the Tallahassee community,” she said.  

In addition to behind-the-scenes access to student success initiatives and mentorship from peers and FSU faculty and staff, she said, participants also receive “a digestible introduction to the needs and assets of the Tallahassee community to which we hope they will feel a sense of belonging and choose to serve.” 

SLS caters specifically to incoming first-year students. Participants arrive a week early to campus, where peer facilitators guide their learning about community engagement and leadership through participation in team-building activities, service projects, workshops led by campus and community partners, and connections with current campus leaders.  

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