Syllabus

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• Syllabus
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• Assignments

  • Assignment 1
  • Assignment 2
  • Assignment 3
  • Assignment 4

Course Meeting Times

Lectures: 1 session / week, 2 hours / session for 8 weeks

Course Overview

Students work in a seminar environment to develop leadership capabilities. An initial Outward Bound experience builds trust, teamwork and communications. Readings and assignments emphasize the characteristics of great leadership. Global leaders participate in the "Leadership Lunch" series to share their experiences and recommendations. Discussions explore leadership development. The learning experience culminates in a personal leadership plan.

Learning Objectives

1. Contemplate essential questions for leadership
2. Define important qualities of a leader
3. Research personal characteristics
4. Discover leadership in action
5. Provide global examples of leadership
6. Formulate a Technology & Policy Program leadership plan for yourself

Grading

Calendar

The following are biographies of the invited guest speakers.

Robert Liebeck

Robert Liebeck, Ph.D., a senior fellow at The Boeing Company and adjunct professor in mechanical and aerospace engineering at UC Irvine, has been bestowed with the Spirit of St. Louis Medal, one of the highest honors given by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). Sharing this medal with past award winners such as Neil Armstrong, Liebeck was chosen for his "meritorious service in the advancement of aeronautics and astronautics," making him the 50th recipient to receive this impressive honor. "It's intimidating to see all of the individuals who I share this award with. I am truly honored to receive this prestigious medal," he said. Liebeck, a member of the National Academy of Engineering, is a respected authority in aerodynamics and aircraft design, and gained international attention in the 1970s for his revolutionary designs in high-lift airfoils, now called "Liebeck airfoils" by peers and industry colleagues. Currently, Liebeck is continuing his work at Boeing and directing the Blended-Wing-Body (BWB) Program, a new class of subsonic transport for both commercial and military use. Liebeck co-developed the BWB airplane configuration, and has been working on this project for about 15 years. The plane will be about a 500-passenger, "flying wing" aircraft with a more efficient design than the Airbus A380. New alterations include a considerable decrease in drag and lower structural weight, resulting in a 30 percent lower fuel burn per seat-mile compared to the A380. Dividing his time between Boeing and teaching, Liebeck is an adjunct professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at UC Irvine and is professor of the practice of aeronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, teaching mechanical and aerospace engineering to undergraduate and graduate students. Liebeck was previously an adjunct professor of aerospace engineering at the University of Southern California from 1977 to 2000.

Brit J. d'Arbeloff

Brit J. d'Arbeloff was the first woman to graduate in mechanical engineering from Stanford University in 1957. She was first in her engineering class, with great distinction; elected to Phi Beta Kappa; and awarded a Women's Bent from Tau Beta Pi. Returning to Chicago, she worked at Cook Research on the Redstone Missile nose-cone-recovery package. She received a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from MIT in 1961 while working full time for Northern Research and Engineering in Cambridge, MA. During this period, she analyzed heating and cooling requirements for high speed air craft, moon launches, and space travel. Witty, provocative, and uncompromising in her presentations, she has often talked to student and alumni groups about the challenges she faced as a woman studying engineering and trying to find employment in her field. From 1964 to 1974, she raised four children and was active in volunteer activities. Returning to engineering, she was a programmer and systems analyst, specializing in manufacturing software. She worked for a year for Minico, nine years for Teradyne, and a year for Digital Equipment. In 1985, Brit and her late husband, Alexander d’Arbeloff, became part-owners of a fashionable women's clothing store, Charles Sumner. She served as Vice President and Treasurer of the store for five years. She retired in 1990 and wrote several unpublished novels and plays. From 1996 to 2003, her late husband Alex became Chairman of the Corporation for MIT. Since then, most of her time has been involved with MIT, although she is connected to several other organizations. She is a member of the MIT Corporation, an enthusiastic leader of MIT’s Council for the Arts, a member of two corporation visiting committees – Social Sciences and Linguistics and Philosophy, a member of the Corporation Development Committee, and as a Bronze Beaver Winner (the highest award bestowed by MIT) she is a member of the Awards Committee. She has six grandchildren and a large extended family.

Sharon Gillett

Sharon Gillett is Chief of the Federal Communications Commission’s Wireline Competition Bureau. Prior to joining the Commission, Ms. Gillett served as the Director of the Massachusetts Broadband Institute and previously headed the Massachusetts Department of Telecommunications and Cable. From 1995-2006, Ms. Gillett was at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where she engaged in academic research, program management, and teaching focused on Internet and Telecommunications Policy, with a particular focus on broadband. She is a former software engineer and manager at Thinking Machines Corp. and BBN Communications Corp, where she worked on ARPANET computer networking technology.