NC Attorney General Jeff Jackson delivered the keynote at Wake Forest’s inaugural Leadership and Character in the Law Conference, sharing lessons on conscience, building trust, and leading with mission.
Leadership, Character & Integrity
Leadership, Character & Integrity
At Wake Forest University, we believe leadership is inseparable from character. In a world defined by rapid change, polarization, and complex moral challenges, we are committed to educating leaders who unite intellect with integrity — leaders whose decisions are guided not only by skills, but by values, virtues, and a commitment to the common good.
Anchored in our Pro Humanitate ethos, Wake Forest approaches leadership as a deeply human endeavor — one shaped by purpose, community, and the moral imagination. We draw on the strengths of the liberal arts, the insights of professional schools, and the lived experiences of diverse communities to prepare students to act with wisdom, courage, compassion, and humility.
For several years, faculty members across departments – chiefly psychology and philosophy – have earned research grants and resulting distinction in initiatives known as The Character Project, the Beacon Project and The Honesty Project.
These successes paved the way for the Program for Leadership and Character, which was founded in 2017 and has grown to be an internationally respected leader in character education. By nurturing an authentic and enduring Wake Forest value — the pursuit of good for humanity — The Program and its partners have made leadership and character education an integrated, sustainable, and campus-wide commitment that has grown from our undergraduate college and taken hold in Wake Forest’s law and medical schools as well.
Wake Forest’s commitment to leadership and character also includes difference-makers such as the Allegacy Center for Leadership and Character in the School of Business; intensive research into vocational formation in the School of Divinity; programs in Law and Medicine; and specific programming in intercollegiate athletics and campus life.
Our scholars continually study how character is cultivated, how integrity survives and thrives when put to the test and how leaders can best serve all of humanity with conscience, consistency and clarity. The Program represents a model convergence of theory and practice.
Furthermore, the Program’s emphasis on sharing its discoveries led to the founding of its Educating Character Initiative, which has sparked a nationwide movement toward higher education through grants and a community of more than 2,000 educators across more than 800 institutions and organizations nationwide. Through this community, the ECI aspires to benefit 1 million college students, faculty, and staff before the end of the decade.
At Wake Forest, Pro Humanitate is more than a motto — it’s a way of life.
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North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson Opens Law Conference at Wake Forest University
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Award-Winning Paper from Wake Forest Engineering Connects Effective Communication Skills to Character
A Wake Forest engineering paper honored at the 2024 ASEE conference shows how teaching communication skills — including courage, empathy, and curiosity — can cultivate ethical character in future engineers.
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LearningWell Magazine Raises National Visibility for Leadership and Character
A feature in LearningWell magazine spotlights Wake Forest’s Program for Leadership and Character, highlighting its world-class faculty researchers and growing national initiative to make character central to higher education.
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How Creative Humility Made Students’ Screenplays More Sublime
Cagney Gentry changed parts of his film studies course to encourage curiosity by looking for small stories. The results helped students see a bigger world beyond their own.
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Our First Class of Leadership and Character Scholars has Graduated. Here’s What They Taught Us.
Wake Forest’s inaugural class of Leadership and Character Scholars reflects on four transformative years of specialized programming, community engagement, and research — all funded through scholarships requiring full participation in character development.
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Wake Forest University Awarded $30M Lilly Endowment Inc. Grant to Build National Capacity for Character Education
Lilly Endowment awarded Wake Forest $30.7 million to expand its Program for Leadership and Character and build a national network of colleges focused on integrating character education into higher education.