One of the problems the student movement for liberty has always faced is the physical distance between the many students and groups dedicated to liberty. The often vast geographic separation between colleges makes it difficult for students to communicate with each other and enhances the feeling of isolation that pro-liberty students feel on their home campuses.
The SFL E-Leadership Series addresses this problem by utilizing innovative communication technology to connect students to each other and the leaders of the liberty movement. We utilize a “webinar”, or web-based seminar, format that allows students all over the country to interact with our guest presenters. We hold two webinars per month: one on the ideas behind the liberty philosophy and one on the techniques to effectively advance liberty on campus and beyond. Students are also able to participate in a question and answer session at the end of the speaker’s presentation.
SFL has been fortunate to host such distinguished guests as Lawrence W. Reed of the Foundation for Economic Education and Professor Jeffrey Miron of Harvard University. However, the E-Leadership Series does not just focus on established academics. We also feature current students who have had success in their efforts. This fall, student leaders have presented on such topics as “Successful Campus Speaker Events” and “Marketing on Campus.”
In total, 393 individual students have attended our webinars this fall from schools as far apart as the University of Idaho and Columbia University. Our highest attendance was for Lawrence Reed’s presentation in early September, which drew 121 students. That represents remarkable growth from last spring when the highest attendance for a webinar was 30 students. This rapid growth can be attributed to aggressive marketing on social networking sites such as Facebook and to the general growth of SFL.
Fall 2009 E-Leadership Schedule
September 8th – “Adam Smith, Free Trade, and the Birth of Economics”
Speaker: Lawrence W. Reed (Foundation for Economic Education)
Total Attendees: 121
September 23rd – “Successful Campus Speaker Events”
Panelists: Jared Fuller (Wake Forest University), Aaron Moyer (Drexel University), Dr. James W. Lark, III (University of Virginia/Libertarian Party)
Total Attendees: 17
October 5th – “An Economic History of the Prison”
Speaker: Dr. Daniel D’Amico (Loyola University New Orleans)
Total Attendees: 56
October 19th – “Marketing on Campus”
Student Panelists: Irena Schneider (American University), Liya P. (George Mason University), Pericles Niarchos (Drexel University), & Masood Manoochehri (Columbia University)
Total Attendees: 24
November 7th – “An Economic Analysis of Drug Legalization”
Speaker: Dr. Jeffrey Miron (Harvard University)
Total Attendees: 97
December 2nd – “How to Get an Internship for Liberty”
Speakers: Scott Barton & Isaac Morehouse (Institute for Humane Studies)
Total Attendees: 36
Spring 2010 E-Leadership Schedule
January 12th – “The Koch Associate Program”
Speaker: Steve Sweet (Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation)
Total Attendees: 19
March 22nd – “How to Write a Winning Resume”
Speaker: Claire Kittle (Talent Market)
Total Attendees: 26
April 27th – “Job Hunting for Liberty”
Panelists: Isaac Morehouse and Scott Barton (Institute for Humane Studies)
Total Attendees: 38
May 26th – “How to Nail the Job Interview”
Panelists: Lea Krohn and Shannon Quantock (Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation)
Total Attendees: 29
June 28th – “Making the Most of Your Summer”
Student Panelists: Chad Wilcox (Institute for Humane Studies)
Total Attendees: 11
Continue on to Student Protest Grants
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