SMU Taos Leadership Institute

Reach New Heights of Leadership Development

In the beautiful mountains of Northern New Mexico, take one 3-credit hour academic course in a cohort-based retreat focused on holistic leadership development. Students will build essential skills including team-building, critical thinking, and creativity & innovation. 

 

 

2025 SMU Taos Leadership Institute:

Dates: July 13-29, 2025 

2025 Theme: Personal Values & Ethics

Amidst an ever-changing society, it is crucial for leaders to reflect, develop, and hone in your personal values and ethics to guide your leadership journey and career compass towards success.

 

2025 Cohort Applications Now Open!

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Learn More about the Taos Leadership Institute

The SMU Taos Leadership Institute is a cohort-based retreat focused on holistic leadership development on the beautiful mountains of Northern New Mexico in the July term. The dates for the 2025 Institute are July 13-29, 2025.

Students will select and take one 3-credit hour academic course offered during the SMU Taos Leadership Institute. The SMU Taos Leadership Institute provides unique opportunities for students to go on cohort field trips that emphasize leadership development and immersive community engagement, receive individualized coaching on developing students' leadership, hear from and connect with influential local and global leaders, and experience team-building activities that immerse students in the great outdoors. 

To attend the SMU Taos Leadership Institute Students must an extended application including a resume, letter of recommendation, and short responses. Faculty and staff may nominate a student using our nomination process (closes October 30th, 2024). 

The Leadership Institute will be more selective than a standard Taos term, looking for students who demonstrate desire to learn and develop leadership skills while in Taos. Friends of Taos scholarships will be available to students attending the Taos Leadership Institute. 

 

SMU Taos Leadership Institute is now accepting applications for the 2025 July Term. The SMU Taos Leadership Institute is an application based program at SMU Taos, not all applicants are guaranteed admission. 

To apply you will need: 

  • Professional Resume: Please detail your prior and current work history, campus involvement, accomplishments, and other demonstrated leadership experiences
  • Letter of Recommendation 
  • Answers to the 4 short answer questions in 400 words or less EACH 

Short Answer Questions for 2025 

1) The SMU Taos Leadership Institute values diversity of thought and experience. To help us better understand who you are, please tell us more about yourself and why you would like to be a part of the SMU Taos Leadership Institute.   

2) The SMU Taos Leadership Institute is a focused leadership retreat program designed to build personal, intellectual, and professional development through a unique and specialized curriculum and a cohort team-building experience. Please describe how the SMU Taos Leadership Institute can help you achieve your professional goals and aspirations.   

3) The common theme of the 2025 SMU Taos Leadership Institute is Personal Values & Ethics in which the courses and interdisciplinary activities are centered. Please describe what this theme means to you and why you are interested in learning about it.   

4) What leadership-related groups are you apart of on or off campus?   

 

All applications will be evaluated by a committee representing each school at SMU. Those who are accepted will receive an acceptance email and letter. Please do not plan travel or book trips to Taos until you have been accepted to the leadership institute. 

2025 SMU Taos Leadership Institute Dates and Deadlines 

Application Deadlines: 

  • Final Application Deadline: February 14th, 2025 
  • Acceptance Delivery Window: March 14th, 2025
  • Final Confirmation Deadline: May 1st, 2025
  • Orientation: June 2025 (Virtual)

Term Dates: 

2025 SMU Taos Leadership Institute Courses 

Students choose one of four leadership focused courses to take during their time in Taos at the leadership institute. Each course represents a different school at SMU, however students do NOT need to take the school they are a major in. It is highly encouraged for students to pursue classes outside their typical school to broaden their perspectives. 

 

AMAE 3387 Principles of Creative Entrepreneurship and Attracting Capital 

Professor Jim Hart

Students develop fundamental skills in creative entrepreneurship and explore ways to attract capital. This experientially based class draws from time-tested entrepreneurial methods to assist students, regardless of their discipline, to create entrepreneurially. Students also learn to act entrepreneurially within existing organizations, entrepreneurship, a process making employees more valuable to the companies they work in and for. Entrepreneurship is an experiential process. Consequently, students in this course engage in games, simulations, demonstrations, and other experiential exercises to offer experiential insights in what it is to act entrepreneurially. Students will also travel to area arts and nonprofit organizations including Meow Wolf in Santa Fe and other sites. Uses experiential learning to gain foundational knowledge of creative entrepreneurship and explore ways to attract capital. Topics include branding, creativity as the keystone of entrepreneurship, crowdfunding, event-based fundraising, leveraging inherent assets, website creation, pitching angel investors and venture capitalists, acting entrepreneurially within existing organizations, navigating startup processes, and other critical entrepreneurship topics.

Fulfills: 

Common Curriculum: Oral Communications (OC)

Required for CCPA Social Innovation and Creative and Arts Entrepreneurship Majors 

Elective Credit for CCPA and Nonprofit and Arts Leadership Majors/Minors

 

CEE 2302 Authentic Leadership

Professor Barbara Minsker

Building key traits of authentic leadership and emotional and cultural intelligence that are critical to leadership success, including self-awareness, awareness of others, & managing self & relationships. Effective teamwork, interpersonal skills, empathic listening, mindfulness, inclusivity, and conflict resolution. Community engagement to complete a service learning project in an underserved community. Learn from local leadership through first hand experiences and strategies for addressing leadership challenges.Two field trips will visit significant cultural and spiritual sites for the tribes. Ongoing journaling and discussions will enhance this experiential learning. Improve clarity about personal meaning and purpose, values, and aims. Increase compassion, ethics, and connection with underserved communities in an increasingly interdependent world. Gain appreciation of the role of mindfulness techniques for increasing emotional intelligence, reducing stress, and improving focus, decision making, and creativity through the Koru Mindfulness Program, which was developed at Duke University for college students. Build self-trust, the foundation of trust in relationships, and learn how to increase trust in personal and business situations. 

Fulfills: 

Common Curriculum: Community Engagement (CE) and Human Diversity (HD)

Computer Science Majors and Minors

 

MNO 3375 Corporate and Social Responsibility and Ethical Leadership 

Professor Heath Clayton

Companies are expected to do more than make money. They are expected to help the community, foster an inclusive workplace, take stands on divisive political and policy issues, and pursue philanthropic activities that have both real and perceived impact. In this course, students will examine contemporary and real-life challenges in business ethics and corporate social responsibility in the context of New Mexico and the legacy of colonialism and racism against Native Americans. Students will build and hone their ability to understand, adapt to, and evaluate the current challenges in business ethics and CSR, using the local New Mexico economy and Native culture as a case study. Students will grow in their personal awareness of their own ethics and will develop an understanding of how to create real social impact through the variety of tools that will be at their disposal as they enter the corporate world. The final project will be working with a local business/organization to create social impact and mitigate the challenges facing the Native American community in/near Taos. 

Fulfills: 

Common Curriculum: Writing (W)

Business, Human Rights, and CCPA Majors and Minors

 

PSYC 3363 Psychology of Conflict Resolution

Professor Chris Logan 

Students will explore the research and theories of the psychology of interpersonal conflict, as well as mechanisms for resolving, managing, or avoiding conflict in professional and personal relationships and interactions. Students will gain knowledge and skills in topics such as mindful communication, understanding perspectives, and negotiation, giving them the tools needed to be successful in business and personal relationships. 

Fulfills: 

Common Curriculum:Social and Behavioral Sciences (SBS), Oral Communication (OC) 

Psychology Majors/Minors

 

UNIV 3305 Personal Responsibility and Community

Professor Jan Mallett

Students examine how personal mindsets, choices, behaviors, and outcomes impact their lives, other people’s lives, and their communities. Through coursework grounded in the Assets-Based Community Development Model, students are challenged to think critically about the effect of values, beliefs, and identities on how they engage with others and their communities at large. In a semester-long community engagement project, students learn about themselves and others, apply class content to a community need, and reflect on the experience through a process that can benefit them throughout their lives.

Fulfills: 

Common Curriculum: Community Engagement (CE), Civic & Individual Ethics (CIE), Oral Communication (OC)

Tuition and Course Fees

Tuition ($1,740/credit hour) 1 course (3-credit hours): $5,220

Optional PRW 2135 Mountain Sports course (1-credit hour): $1,740
Course Fees $200 for 3-credit courses

Summer: $800 for 1-credit hour PRW 2135 Mountain Sports


Mandatory Room and Board

17 days: $1,980

To see a full breakdown of costs for the SMU Taos Leadership Institute and a list of applicable pro-rated SMU Scholarships - please visit our SMU-in-Taos Cost Calculator.

 

Scholarships and Financial Aid

All SMU Taos Financial Aid and Scholarship opportunities are also available for the SMU Taos Leadership Institute including: 

Friends of Taos Scholarship

The Friends of Taos Scholarship is a need-based partial scholarship that can be applied towards the tuition of an SMU-in-Taos course. They are available to full-time SMU undergraduate students attending SMU-in-Taos. Assistance is limited and is awarded at the discretion of the SMU-in-Taos Scholarship Award Committee. The award is based primarily on demonstrated financial need although students may provide evidence of extenuating circumstances. Students receiving tuition assistance awards are responsible for all remaining fees, room and board and transportation expenses. 

Apply for the Friends of Taos Scholarship (You must have an active SMU Taos application to apply)

 

SMU Taos Student Workers

There are 2 student worker positions available to apply to where you will be provided with a SMU-in-Taos scholarship. You can apply for both positions. 

Apply for Student Worker Roles in Taos (You must have an active SMU Taos application to apply)

1. SMU-in-Taos Student Ambassador: The Student Ambassador is a student who is employed by SMU-in-Taos and works as part of a staff team in order to build a positive community experience for residents during the term. The Student Ambassador reports directly to the Taos Student Affairs Representative. Student Ambassadors will be compensated with a room and board scholarship, specific amount will vary based on responsibilities.

Expectations:

  • Building positive community: The Student Ambassador is expected to know the individual students during their term on a personal basis. Each Student Ambassador is expected to create and encourage activities and programs that enhance community and meet residents' personal and academic needs The RA serves as a role model for students in every aspect of University life and is expected to know the various campus services available to students. Assist in planning, promoting, and executing campus programming and social events throughout the term. 
  • Help with check in and check out processes: Arrive to the SMU-in-Taos campus one day prior to the term's "Arrival Date" and depart at the close of duties on the term's "Departure Date". 
  • Attend all training sessions, in either Dallas or Taos. 
  • Meet with supervisor and/or team as needed.Additional tasks as determined by Student Affairs Coordinator (s) and SMU-in-Taos staff. 
  • For the SMU Taos Leadership Institute, there is an expectation to also help facilitate the leadership co-curricular activities. 

2. SMU-in-Taos Student Driver: Student Drivers are employed by SMU-in-Taos and will help drive vans to field trips for classes. Student Drivers will only drive the vans responsibility for outlined purposes and nothing else. Student drivers must be over 21. Student Drivers will also help foster intimate community during the term by promoting and helping host community events.  Student Drivers will be compensated with a room and board scholarship, specific amount will vary based on driver needs. 

 

For Full information regarding SMU Taos Scholarships and Financial Aid, please visit our financial aid webpage. 

Why Taos Leadership Institute?

Community Engagement

Experience cohort-based academic and co-curricular activities that foster leadership development, immersive community engagement, and experience the great outdoors.

Through a common theme and reading each year, the SMU Taos Leadership Institute forms a collaborative learning and professional community during the term. Students engage deeply on and off the Taos campus through field trips, volunteering and mentorship by various guest speakers.


Grow Your Network

Be inspired by influential local and global leaders brought to campus by the Taos Cultural Institute, an annual gathering of prominent members of the SMU community and the SMU Taos Board of Directors.  Engage with a dynamic community of successful leaders and mentors during your time on campus and build your network.  Leave with concrete takeaways on how to forge your leadership journey.


Self and Professional Growth

Receive individualized coaching to develop your leadership skills in a supportive, collaborative retreat setting.

Amplify your 21st century transferable skills including communication, collaboration, and problem solving through project-based learning in courses supporting a community of diverse leaders focused on lively discussion, debate, presentation, and interactive seminars.