The Shelton Challenge is a six-day, residential program built on the Shelton Leadership Center’s core values, and is designed to help high school students enhance their capacities to become values-based leaders. This immersive program is designed to transform potential into real-world skills through mentorship, self-reflection, and shared discovery. 

The program invites emerging leaders to be part of an engaged community for the week and participate in activities designed to teach leadership concepts such as ethical decision-making, civic and social responsibility, effective communication, collaboration, and goal setting. Are you up for the Challenge?

Our Approach

We Learn Through Experience

Participants practice leadership skills in real-world settings like low- and high-ropes courses, service projects, and social activities, where they reflect critically and develop their own solutions rather than relying on staff.

We Grow With Each Other

Participants and staff work together as partners, respecting each other’s contributions regardless of age or background, providing daily feedback to help everyone learn, grow, and become better leaders.

We Lead With Our Values

By guiding our actions and decisions with purpose, participants learn that leading with shared values strengthens not only their own leadership but also the communities they are part of.

2026 Shelton [re]Challenge

Saturday, November 21, 2026

Did you love your time at the Shelton Challenge? Are you looking for an opportunity to reconnect with the community and learn more about values-based leadership? Join us at our 2026 [re]Challenge on November 21, a one-day experience designed to bring the Shelton Challenge community together and explore values-based leadership.

Learn more

Summer 2027 Dates

We will be sharing summer 2027 dates soon.

More information

Interested in returning to the Shelton Challenge or joining our Volunteer Staff?

If you’re passionate about developing the next generation of leaders, we welcome you to volunteer on our summer staff. We offer a variety of volunteer roles each summer, and even if you haven’t participated in the Shelton Challenge as a student, there’s a place for you on our team!

Learn more and apply

Other Shelton Challenge Sites

The Shelton Leadership Center partners with communities across North Carolina and beyond to provide this leadership experience to pre-college students. Students who participate at one of these sites receive the same opportunities and experiences they would at the Red Hat Shelton Challenge, though customized for their particular needs and spaces. Partners are trained by Shelton Leadership Center and provided with all the resources to deliver the program at their site. If you are interested in attending a Shelton Challenge at one of our other sites, please visit their websites below:

NC Wesleyan University, Rocky Mount, NC

McNair Educational Foundation

Thank You to Our Supporters and Partners

The generous support of many partners makes the Shelton Challenge experience possible!

We would like to thank:

• Red Hat, Inc.
• Shelton Challenge Alumni and Friends

1 in 3 Red Hat Shelton Challenge participants attend the program with support from needs-based scholarships. Be the spark that ignites a younger leader’s journey:

Meet our Shelton Challenge Staff

PW

Parker Watson

Assistant Director for Pre-College Programs & First Year Experiences

[email protected]

Shelton Challenge News

February 14, 2024

Alumni Feature: Matthew and Marian Baroncelli

For program alumni Matthew and Marian Baroncelli, the Shelton Challenge is more than just a leadership experience. It is a long-standing part of their family. Both Matthew and Marian attended…

January 17, 2024

NC State Employees Can Contribute to a 20-Year Legacy with the Shelton Challenge

There are many ways that NC State employees can be involved in the 2024 Red Hat Shelton Challenge. For over 20 years, the Shelton Leadership Center has produced this youth leadership development program…