Named after Ruth Weimer Mount, the Mount Leadership Society focuses on students committed to leadership and community service.
The Mount Leadership Society fosters an ethic of service and develops leaders for a global society. We carry out this mission through a series of social, service, and learning experiences. Hosted by the Office of Student Life, Mount is a two-year scholars program. Once you complete the program, you have the opportunity to continue your involvement as a Post Mount (third and fourth year Mount Scholar). Post Mounts stay involved until graduation and beyond. No wonder our motto is: Together for Good!
First Year
- Move into campus early for Launch Week
- Take the Mount Seminar Class (fall semester)
- Engage in the Mini-Mega mentorship program
- Join a Mount committee
- Attend Fall Retreat
- Participate in monthly service experiences
- Interact with university faculty, staff, and Mount alumni
- Travel to Washington DC trip (optional)
- Plan and host service projects for Mount Legacy Week
Second Year
- Focus on Citizenship
- Chair a Mount committee (optional)
- Complete the Year of Service
- Take HESA 2571 or HESA 2577 class
- Attend the Spring Retreat
- Go on a Washington DC trip (optional)
- Bridge to Post Mount status
Third and Fourth Years (Post Mounts)
- Serve as advisors to first year teams
- Guide younger Mount Scholas
- Participate in Post Mount brunches, trips, and socials
- Attend career panels with Mount alums
- Lead Post Mount Board (optional)
- Celebrate accomplishments at Senior Send-Off
Expectations and Benefits
As a Mount Scholar, you get to:
- Participate in all Mount activities
- Fully contribute to Mount Legacy Week
- Successfully complete the Mount Seminar class
- Volunteer 75 hours or more with your Year of Service
- Take 2nd year class
- Learn the five Mount Essentials
- Maintain a 3.0 GPA or higher
- Better Mount’s reputation on campus
- Make the most out of your Mount experience!
Benefits of being a Mount Scholar include:
- Living and learning with peers who have similar interests
- College-level priority scheduling
- Seminar class designed for Mount Scholars
- Engage with faculty and staff at OSU
- Build relationships with Mount alumni
- Unique focus on leadership and service
- Scholarships available just for select Mount Scholars
- The honor of carrying out Ruth Mount’s legacy
Involvement in Mount takes about 10-15 hours/month. That certainly gives you plenty of time to join other student organizations, hold a part-time job, play sports, etc. Mount Scholars are typically very involved students. We work to help you best manage your time as a busy college student.
What We Stand For
What does it mean to be a good leader? What does it mean to have an ethic of service? Mount Scholars strive for a sense of belonging and work towards positive social change. We adhere to five values, drawn from Ruth Weimer Mount’s personal talents and gifts, that are essential to being a leader of quality. These Mount Essentials include:
- Honor of Integrity
- Being Prepared and Following Through
- Creating and Nurturing Relationships
- Valuing Individuals
- Willingness to Teach Others
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.
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.
Leadership Classes
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, serving others, and decision-making.
Second year Mount Scholars take one of two classes: HESA 2571 or HESA 2577. Both classes support the Mount mission and are three credit hours.
Majors
We want students from all majors to be in our program (a variety of majors makes Mount even better!).
Majors
Many Mount Scholars choose to schedule the same classes with their Mount friends. Additionally, scholars receive college-level priority scheduling which allows them to schedule classes at the beginning of their rank.
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.
The series of Mount events and activities combine to build your skills, empower your sense of commitment, and prepare you for the future. Be sure to take full advantage of all that Mount has to offer. We pride ourselves in wanting to make a difference and taking action.
Leadership
Leadership Training - 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. Again, guest speakers and dynamic activities are the norm.
Roundtables - Our Leadership and Social Change Committee hosts a series of speaker discussions to educate fellow scholars on current events. First and Second year Mount Scholars attend one roundtable each academic year, yet many choose to attend multiple.
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 safety, education, environment, global, health, 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. Past 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.
Trips
Leadership Retreats - Both first and second year Mount Scholars attend leadership retreats in southeastern Ohio. Held in the fall, the retreat for first year Mount Scholars is a great chance for new students to learn about decision making skills, problem solving, teamwork and more. The second year retreat is held in the spring and encourages Mount Scholars to reflect on their accomplishments and the legacy they wish to leave behind.
Washington DC - 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. Past trips have included:
- Shadowing Congressional offices
- In-depth tour of the F.B.I.
- Sitting in on a Congressional Committee meetings
- Networking with Mount Alums in the DC area
Other Events and Activities
In addition to leadership and service experiences, Mount Scholars have a lot of fun at organized and informal social events. Past events include:
- Fall “welcome back” mingle
- Softball, volleyball, and basketball intramural teams
- Mount Gala (formal event in February)
- Homecoming Parade
- Bowen Brunches
- Chili Cook-off
- And more!
Community
Each Scholars program features a first-year residential community that provides students with a peer-network of high-achieving students with similar interests. First-year Mount Scholars are given priority to live together in Bowen House.** Commuters are welcome to be a part of our Scholars programs.
**Please note that space in the prescribed residence halls is not guaranteed and students can be placed in other accommodations due to program demand if necessary.
We Value Belonging
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.
Connections
Mount Launch Week - First year Mount Scholars arrive on campus before other students. During Launch Week, Mount Scholars build relationships through teambuilding activities, learn Mount norms, and connect with upper-level students.
Mini-Mega Program - First year Mount Scholars are paired with upper-level students to help with their transition from high school to college. The Megas (upper-level students) answer questions, show their Minis (first years) 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. Committees, chaired by upper-level Mount Scholars, begin in August. Joining a committee is optional. Committees include:
- Advancement and Alumni Relations Committee (AARC) – plans events to connect 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 The Peak, 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.
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.
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