Graduation and induction ceremony for the Charpie Leadership Institute in April 2025.
The Charpie Leadership Institute
The Charpie Leadership Institute is a robust two-semester learning experience for second-year undergraduate students—from all majors and colleges—that endeavors to cultivate principled, action-oriented and democratically engaged student leaders who are agents of positive social change in a complex and diverse world.
Built on the principles of The Social Change Model of Leadership, this program includes a one-semester for-credit course on leadership development (3-units, Mondays & Wednesdays 4:00-4:50pm), year-long regular check-ins with a one-on-one mentor and an individually designed democratically engaged project in an impact area of concern to the student.
Through participation in this program, students will:
- Identify and address impact areas at Â鶹¹ÙÍø and in the greater Pittsburgh community.
- Earn course-credit while investing in personal, professional and leadership development.
- Gain access of up to $5,000 from a fund earmarked for democratically engaged projects and professional development opportunities.
- Develop networking opportunities with students, alumni and community leaders.
Apply
The application deadline has been extended, admissions are rolling.
Charpie Institute applications include:
- a leadership portfolio
- forward visioning documentation of personal and career aspirations
- in-person interviews
Meet the Current Cohort
Raiyan Bakshi
College of Engineering
Niyati Bangalore
Dietrich College
Alexis Choi
Dietrich College
Sara Chokshi
Dietrich College
William Filocamo
College of Engineering
Ren Gonzalez
Mellon College of Science
Daniel Ho
Dietrich College
Lara Karaalp
College of Engineering
Stella Rose
Mellon College of Science
Naeva Shah
Tepper School of Business
Ankita Varigonda
Mellon College of Science
Marco Vilet
Mellon College of Science
Avery Zakowich
Dietrich College
Past Cohorts
2025-2026 Cohort
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Amanda Barajas(Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences) |
Ritika Chhabra(School of Engineering) |
Aanya Chidananda(Tepper School of Business) |
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Lauren Cho(Tepper School of Business) |
Johnny Gallick(Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences) |
Trisha Jha(Tepper School of Business) |
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Kshan Pandey(School of Engineering) |
Emily Rhine(Mellon College of Science) |
Hannah Veveiros(Tepper School of Business) |
2024-2025 Cohort
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Deepti Aggarwal(Tepper School of Business) |
Zach Berger(Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences) |
Elaine Gombos(School of Computer Science) |
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Eli Half(Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences) |
Ainika Hou(Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences) |
Rachel Lewis(College of Engineering) |
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Eden Tsvetkov(Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences) |
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The Charpie Leadership Institute is made possible in part by a generous fund established by Dr. Robert Charpie along with the generosity of the rest of the Charpie Family. Dr. Charpie graduated from Carnegie Mellon with B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in theoretical physics. He recounted many times that the most important lesson learned throughout his career was the importance of identifying and attracting people with strong leadership skills.
Prior to the establishment of The Charpie Leadership Institute, these funds supported the Charpie Scholarship program, which was awarded to newly admitted Â鶹¹ÙÍø students with an exemplary academic record and promise of leadership potential. Charpie scholars engaged in leadership training, experiential learning and civic engaged endeavors designed to cultivate their sensibilities as scholars.
Conceptual Framework
The Charpie Leadership Institute is conceptually founded on The Social Change Model (Higher Education Research Institute), which views leadership as a purposeful, collaborative, and values-driven process. This framework is amended with resources from Jordan Harper and Adrianna Kezar's Leadership for Liberation (National Association of Student Personnel Administrators). Leadership for Liberation is designed to address gaps in The Social Change Model that have arisen in the decades since the latter's introduction.