The Mount Leadership Society fosters an ethic of service and develops leaders for a global society.
Named after Ruth Weimer Mount, the Mount Leadership Society focuses on students committed to leadership and community service. Our mission is to foster an ethic of service and develop leaders for a global society. We carry out this mission through a series of social, service and learning experiences, and are guided by the five Mount Essentials. Once you complete the program, you have the opportunity to continue your involvement as a Post Mount (third and fourth year Mount Scholar) and to connect with over 2200 Mount alums. No wonder our motto is: Together for Good!
Academics
Mount Scholars have the opportunity to engage with faculty, staff, and community leaders inside and outside of the classroom. The programs offered compliment what students are learning in the classroom and offer personal connection that other students do not find.
Seminar Course
First year Mount Scholars take a one-credit hour Mount Seminar course that meets weekly fall semester. Taught by the program coordinator, this course focuses on leadership styles, leadership skills, ethical service, and decision-making.
First Year Requirements
- Move to campus early for Launch Week
- Take the Mount Seminar Class (fall semester)
- Engage in the Mini-Mega mentorship program
- Join a Mount committee (optional)
- Attend Fall Retreat
- Participate in monthly service experiences
- Attend monthly first year meetings
- Interact with university faculty, staff, and Mount alumni
- Plan and host service projects for Mount Legacy Week
Second Year Requirements
- Focus on Citizenship
- Chair a Mount committee (optional)
- Complete the Year of Service
- Take HESA 2571 or HESA 2577 class
- Attend the Spring Retreat
- Attend monthly second year meetings
- Bridge to Post Mount status
Third and Fourth Year Requirements
- Serve as advisors to first year legacy week teams
- Guide younger Mount Scholars
- Participate in brunches, trips, and socials just for Post Mounts
- Attend career panels with Mount alums
- Lead Post Mount Board (optional)
- Celebrate accomplishments at Senior Send-Off
Clustered Courses
Second year Mount Scholars take one of two classes: HESA 2571 or HESA 2577. Both classes are three credit hours and support the mission of Mount.
Scholarships
Due to generous donations from friends of the program and former students of Ruth Weimer Mount, the Mount Leadership Society awards scholarships to a limited number of students. These scholarships include:
- Reginald Morse Scholarship for Mount Scholars in the College of Engineering
- Richard D. Johnson Leadership Scholarship recognizing Mount Scholars who have excelled in leadership and been inducted into a junior or senior class honorary.
- James F. and Barbara Young Sipp Scholarship for a Mount Scholar who best emulates the Mount Essentials
- Jamie Kelleher Scholarship for Mount Scholars studying in the health science fields.
- Peggy O’Brien Kratzer Memorial Scholarship, a need-based scholarship for an incoming Mount Scholar.
Unless otherwise noted, scholarships are awarded to 2nd year Mount Scholars completing the program.
Events and Activities
Mount is strong in tradition. From our Launch Week program to our end of the year Celebration Ceremony, Mount has many intentional activities and events. While we focus on leadership and in-depth community service, you also get to connect with prominent OSU faculty, staff, and alums while learning about yourself, and engaging with community agencies. We pride ourselves in making a difference in our communities and taking action.
Signature Events
Launch Week
- First year Mount Scholars arrive on campus a week before classes start with a focus on teambuilding, learning about Mount traditions, getting to know upper-level Mount Scholars and introducing the five Mount Essentials.
First Year Retreat
- First years go on an overnight retreat to Camp Akita in Hocking Hills in November to learn more about goal setting, belonging and leadership styles.
Year of Service
- Second Year Mount Scholars each volunteer 75 hours of service towards one or two long term social change project(s) of their choosing. As part of the project, scholars interview constituents and reflect critically on what they have learned.
Legacy Week
- Mount Legacy Week is a two-week period in mid-February in which first year scholars carry out service projects in honor of Ruth Mount’s legacy. Six teams (Education, Environment, Global, Health, Safety and Security) form in October, with each team charged to design, plan, and implement two service projects.
Second Year Retreat
- Second year Mount Scholars return to Camp Akita in the spring for a weekend-long retreat. Students reflect on their accomplishments and the legacy they wish to leave behind.
Celebration Ceremony
- Held in the spring, the Mount Celebration Ceremony recognizes the achievements of Mount Scholars. Scholarships are awarded, and first year’s bridge to the second year. Esteemed Post Mount are also awarded the Silver Pin and Mount Medallion.
Professional Development
Mount Scholars interview Mount alums as part of Seminar Class. In addition, Mount committees host professional development sessions including our annual Careers and Convos event.
Travel
Each year, a select group of Mount Scholars travel to Washington DC over spring break to learn about leadership behind the scenes in our nation's capital including:
- Shadowing Congressional offices
- In-depth tour of the F.B.I.
- Attending Congressional Committee meetings
- Networking with Mount Alums in the DC area
Workshops
First year Mount Scholars gather on Monday nights twice a month for leadership training workshops. Workshops cover a wide range of topics, including resilience, public speaking, and goal setting. Second year Mount Scholars meet on Wednesday nights and focus on global, national, and local citizenship. Guest speakers and dynamic activities are the norm.
In addition, Mount hosts a series of Social Change Roundtables focusing on current events and hosted by faculty, staff, and Mount alums. Students are encouraged to attend one or more each year.
Community
Ruth Weimer Mount believed in creating and nurturing relationships, and that everyone is valued. This truism is carried out in what we say and do. The Mount program seeks to value everyone’s lived experiences, including our cultures, our beliefs, our ethnicities, and what we value. Mount Scholars care about one another. We look out for each other, support each other, celebrate with each other, and challenge each other to reach our full potentials. Everyone is welcome in the Mount Leadership Society.
Community Meetings
In addition to our regular meetings on Monday nights (first years) and Wednesday nights (second years), Mount hosts fun events designed to build community including:
- Fall “welcome back” mingle
- Softball, volleyball, and basketball intramural teams
- Mount Gala (formal dance in winter)
- Homecoming Parade
- Bowen Brunches
- Chili Cook-off
- And more!
Mentorship Program
Mount hosts a Mini-Mega program. First year Mount Scholars are individually paired with upper-level students to help with their transition from high school to college. Megas (upper-level students) reach out to new Mount Scholars (the Minis) in the summer, answer questions, take their Minis to their classrooms before classes start, and provide mentorship throughout the year.
Committees
Committees play a major role in the success of the Mount Leadership Society. Chaired by upper-level Mount Scholars, committees start in August and continue through April. While committee membership is optional, over 100 Mount Scholars join a committee each year.
- Advancement and Alumni Relations Committee (AARC) –connects current students with Mount Alumni and cultivates career readiness
- Community Activities Committee (CAC) - promotes togetherness through wellness and social activities including CACky Games and Mount Gala
- Leadership and Social Change Committee (LSCC) - hosts roundtable discussions and creates newsletters focusing on social change
- Media and Archive Committee (MAC) – markets Mount events via our weekly newsletter, and documents Mount’s history
- Recruitment, Outreach and Welcoming Committee (ROW) - facilitates the Mini-Mega mentorship program, reaches out to incoming students, and organizes Mount orientation.
- Service Committee - plans service projects and leads reflection activities
- Summit Committee - coordinates faculty speakers and event details for two leadership conferences on social change
- Post Mount Board – hosts activities to bolster community amongst third and fourth year Mount Scholars.
Service
Monthly Service Projects - First year Mount Scholars volunteer on a monthly basis to benefit the campus and Columbus area. Some of our projects include:
- Hosting a collaborative activity day with high school students with disabilities.
- Working alongside Friends of the Lower Olentangy Watershed (FLOW) to clean up local areas of the Olentangy River
- Volunteering at the Mid-Ohio Food Collective to impact food insecurity.
Mount Legacy Week - Mount Legacy Week is held in February. Mount Scholars join a service team focused on education, environment, global, health, safety or security. The goal of each team is to design and implement two service projects benefiting the community, incorporating the Mount Essentials, and honoring the legacy of Ruth Weimer Mount. Projects include:
- Serving warm meals, entertainment, and kindness to guests at the Dream Center.
- Painting murals at a local high school in conjunction with Community Immigrant and Refugee Services (CRIS)
- Helping low-income families secure diapers, clothes, and cribs to reduce infant mortality.
Year of Service - Second years focus on citizenship and what it means to be a good citizen. Scholars devote their year to serving their community, spending a minimum of 75 hours working with a service agency of their choosing. Example Year of Service Projects include:
- Mentoring elementary school students via College Mentors for Kids.
- Building houses with Habitat for Humanity.
- Fostering and socializing service dogs in training with 4 Paws.
Residential Requirement
First-year Mount Leadership Society Scholars students live together in Bowen House.
The residential community is an important element of the Scholars experience, and is required for all students with the exception of commuter students. Space in the prescribed residence hall is subject to availability, and while Scholars are given housing priority, space is not guaranteed and students may be placed in other accommodations due to program demand if necessary.
All Scholars
While each of the 16 Scholars Programs builds experiences for students around its unique theme, students benefit from shared Scholars experiences. All Scholars Programs:
- Are open to students of any major.
- Feature a first-year residential community.
- Have a first-year seminar course.
- Are led by an experienced full-time professional Program Manager.
- Are academically-driven communities with a minimum GPA requirement of 3.0 to participate.
- Have a student leadership council, offering leadership opportunities, community programming, and service projects.
Honoring Ruth Weimer Mount
The Mount Leadership Society Scholars Program is named in honor of the late Ruth Weimer Mount. Ruth joined Ohio State as the Assistant Dean of Women in 1953. Later after holding other numerous positions, she was named the first Dean of Students in 1968. During her career, Ruth also served as President of National Mortar Board Inc., the Association of College Honor Societies, and the National Association of Women Deans, Administrators and Counselors.
After stepping down as Dean, Ruth continued her work in various volunteer roles for Ohio State and the community, including involvement with the OSU Hospitals Service and Executive Boards, the Alumni Association, the University’s Women’s Clubs, Planned Parenthood, Columbus Symphony Orchestra, and Franklin County Children’s Services. Of Ruth’s life and legacy, one friend said, “Ruth Weimer Mount was the consummate volunteer. All that she did was directed at improving the quality of life for others, particularly young people.” Another stated, “Ruth Mount was a unique mentor. Her guidance, grace, and leadership will serve as an example for the rest of my life.”
After Ruth’s death in 1997, the university wanted to honor her extraordinary commitment to leadership and service. While many options were considered, the university decided it would be most fitting to create a living, learning community of students to carry on her legacy of leadership and service. The Mount Leadership Society is an appropriate and fitting tribute to a woman who dedicated herself to The Ohio State University, public service, and student development throughout her extraordinary life and career.
The Mount Leadership Society was piloted with 52 students in the first class of 1999. Students were selected based on their interest in leadership and service. They were paired with a university mentor, engaged in service projects, and enhanced their leadership skills.