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Shelton Scholars at a program event.

Shelton Scholars

Values-based leaders seeking to positively impact their industries.

The Shelton Scholars Program is a four year experience that develops well-educated, service-oriented values-based leaders. Scholars explore their personal values and passions and reflect on how to lead with integrity.

They also work together as a cohort to make a positive impact on social challenges, in their communities and across the globe. By the time they graduate from NC State, Scholars are prepared to lead ethically and effectively.

20+

Years of program history.

45

Current Scholars and alumni.

$7,000

in scholarships and enrichment funds awarded per year to each Scholar.

The Cohort Experience

While the Shelton Scholars program invites self-directed study and leadership development, key elements of the program are completed in an interdisciplinary cohort comprised of students from across fields of study at NC State.

Shelton Scholars on international trip.

Program Elements

Mentorship

Scholars get 1 to 1 mentorship from the program director to support personal, academic and leadership goal-setting and success.

Seminars

Scholars learn together as a cohort about the principles and practices of values-based leadership. They explore how to work effectively in teams, build collaborative partnerships, and engage others with integrity.

Leadership Practice

Scholars develop and implement individual leadership practice projects to develop their leadership skills and make a difference in their communities. Projects may range from research to civic engagement to entrepreneurship to service-learning, depending on personal goals and interests.

Community Engagement

Scholars participate in service projects led by their peers to help them learn how to think critically about social challenges and to take meaningful and effective action in collaboration with others. 

Global Experiences

Scholars have the opportunity to travel internationally to build cross-cultural partnerships and to serve others on a global scale.

Networking Opportunities

Scholars cultivate relationships across their communities as well as within the Shelton Leadership Center family of program alumni, supporters and staff.

Program Goals

The goals of the Shelton Scholars program are rooted in the Shelton Leadership Center mission to inspire, educate and develop values-based leaders committed to personal integrity, professional ethics and selfless service. 

Shelton Scholars on program excursion
  • Values-Based Leadership: Scholars will gain the reflective self-awareness to articulate and demonstrate their role and responsibilities as well-educated, service-oriented, values-based leaders. 
  • Personal integrity: Scholars will create personal, academic and professional goals in alignment with their individual values and strengths, and pursue those goals with integrity. 
  • Professional ethics: Scholars will develop teamwork and effective communication skills to ethically engage with others, exercising compassionate empathy, civility, and productive conflict resolution.
  • Selfless service: Scholars will build confidence in their ability to effect positive change by thinking critically about social challenges and building collaborative and inclusive partnerships, domestically and internationally, in the service of others.

“Being a Shelton Scholar has given me the opportunity to exercise different leadership techniques, while learning about some of the discrete academic philosophies on leadership.”

Jacob Martin on NC State's campus.

Jacob Martin

Senior Shelton Scholar

Contact our Shelton Scholars staff

Have questions about the Shelton Scholars program? Reach out to our program staff:

Annaka Sikkink

Assistant Director for Scholars and Special Programs