A cohort of students, faculty and staff gather to grow in shared understanding of virtuous leadership through the Leadership Champions Network
Officially launched in the spring of 2025, the Leadership Champions Network (LCN) brings together faculty, staff and – distinctively – students, to strengthen a culture of leadership and character at Belmont LCN members gathered for the community’s third semesterly meeting March 30.
Developed by the Employee Leadership Development Team (ELD) and supported by the Belmont Formation Collaborative the LCN focuses on how leadership is practiced in everyday choices, actions and relationships. Today, the network is made of over 70 faculty and staff members, alongside 12 students from colleges and departments across campus.
“The work of ELD is rooted in a belief that everyone is a leader,” said Jeremy Fyke, director of character-centered leadership. “We designed the LCN to reflect this truth, drawing on wisdom from a wide range of disciplines and experience levels.”
By including students, the LCN invites the full campus community into the process of leadership development and character formation.
“Students bring a wealth of fresh insights and energy to the program,” Fyke added. “Inviting them into the LCN allows us to not just consider their voices but actively engage them in our work.”
Making virtuous leadership practical
One of the goals of the LCN is to help the Belmont community translate Belmont’s aspirational language around character into daily practice. Using the SOUL framework virtues of humility, joy, love and hope, as a guide, the group identified specific behaviors across a core dimension of leadership: Leading Self. Together, the group explored what it might look like to live out the SOUL framework through daily work of self-leadership.
To support movement from reflection to action, Joe Mankowski, associate director of formation and leadership development, introduced “habit cards”: simple physical queues to help participants apply "Leading with SOUL” in their daily work and relationships.
Resourcing character exploration across campus
The LCN also serves as a launchpad for action through its mini-grant program, which funds grassroots formation initiatives across campus. This semester, ELD awarded $21,500 in mini grants to support faculty and staff projects bringing these ideas to life in their respective areas.
“The mini grants are a way to support our leaders in making the changes they talk about,” said Cora Williams, who serves as the presidential fellow for character and leadership.
Recipients are already putting that support into practice.
In the Inman College of Nursing, Sky Montgomery is helping students reimagine leadership within their profession. Through a series of reflection and discussion sessions, students heard from experienced nurses about how virtues like humility and joy shape their practice.
For Belmont Junior Sheeva Chourazghi-Azad, the grant supported initiatives focused on civic engagement and dialogue across differences within her sorority. “Character is something I value deeply,” shared Chourazghi-Azad. “I feel so grateful to the Formation Collaborative for investing in this at Belmont and for this unique opportunity to help my community grow.”
Leadership shaped by collaboration
As the Leadership Champions Network continues to evolve and scale its work across campus, its impact is rooted in the breadth of voices it brings together. By equipping leaders across disciplines, Belmont is building a more connective and practical approach to character-centered leadership.
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