U.E.X.C.E.L. holds an informational meeting
Members of the U.E.X.C.E.L. program held a meeting to inform students about the importance of leadership around campus on Nov. 18, 2019.
U.E.X.C.E.L. is an award-winning leadership program focused on teaching underclassmen minority students on campus the power of bonding together and becoming a leader through training programs, according to executive board director and senior electrical engineering major Gregory Jackson II.
U.E.X.C.E.L., founded by UMD alumna Lora Fitzgerald, is an acronym that stands for “unifying engaging experiences committed to empowering leadership.” The organization is built on their “5 C’s”: culture, commitment, communication, community, and connectivity.
“We definitely try to stem them back into everything we do,” Jackson said.
Fitzgerald was motivated to start U.E.X.C.E.L. when she returned to the university to finish her degree in 2017 and heard her follow students complaining about a lack of freshman involvement.
“I heard how the freshman were never involved, and I asked my classmates, ‘if they are never involved what are you doing to get them involved?’” Fitzgerald said.
“I’m a person about solutions,” she added, and over the course of the next year, she began to build a team of members, including Jackson, to start U.E.X.C.E.L.
The program held its first set of spring training programs during the spring 2019 semester, according to Jackson. It is a six-week program that typically meets on Saturday mornings for about two and a half hours.
The curriculum is mainly focused on aligning self and campus leadership, as well as, “the soft and technical skills that come with being a leader typically on this campus,” said Jackson.
The spring training uses personality tests to personalize the learning experience for each individual student. Utilizing the results, mentors work to help students understand what their results mean to them and incorporate that into communicating effectively in different roles, Jackson said.
Currently U.E.X.C.E.L only offers a spring training option for students as they work to strengthen their program and build sponsors, according to Jackson.
“We definitely want to be strong in one area before jumping out into others,” he added. “I’ve seen this program start from the ground up and I’m really proud of where it has gotten now,” Jackson said.
U.E.X.C.E.L is a student-run organization for students, according to Fitzgerald. She does not take any formal role with the group.
“I’m here as a pure advisor to ensure that the continuity and consistency of the program sustains itself,” she said.
U.E.X.C.E.L has a Google forum, offers open group chats for students to join and social media accounts for students to learn more about the program and its members.