NEWBURGH – The week before classes resumed for nearly 2,500 Mount Saint Mary College students, 13 incoming freshmen completed The Dyson Summer Leadership Institute, a comprehensive program designed to support the transition of first-year Mount students from high school to college.
The program was coordinated by Megan Morrissey, an academic coach/advisor with the college’s Office of Student Success (a part of the Student Support Center), and Brianne Thompson, leadership development coach. Academic coaches/advisors Tara Scharf and Patrick Duffy also served as facilitators for the program.
According to Morrissey, the Dyson Summer Leadership Institute was designed to offer the entering freshmen “valuable leadership experience and academic skills” in advance of the Fall semester.
“Our Dyson Leaders participated in hands-on activities that will help them build skills such as communication, trust, collaboration, and determination,” Morrissey explained.
The students enjoyed a variety of development activities and interactive sessions, including serving at the Newburgh Ministry, a local charitable organization. Students also benefited from academic coaching and leadership development training at a ropes course at Ramapo for Children in Rhinebeck, N.Y.
Each of the Dyson students is from the Hudson Valley and is either a first-generation college student, or comes from an economically disadvantaged/historically underserved background.
The Dyson Summer Leadership Institute is funded through the Dyson Foundation and presented in partnership by the college’s department of Student Affairs and the Student Support Center.
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