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Leadership through rhetoric is vital for those with limited resources and formal authority who must rally others primarily through language and arguments. Rhetoric is a humanities-based academic specialty that focuses on making, evaluating, and improving arguments in practical, shared decision-making situations. Unlike public relations or management approaches to leadership, the discipline of rhetoric has a 2500-year tradition of motivating, teaching, and critically examining how symbols unite people for or against shared action. A rhetorical education prepares students with a theoretical framework and practical skills and models for effective, ethical leadership in areas like public service, education, the non-profit sector, business, and social activism. To learn about Rhetorical Leadership in greater depth, check the Publications portion of this website. To see Rhetorical Leadership in action, check the Alumni Profiles in the People portion of this website.
Rhetorical Leadership Program graduates
- are able to understand a shared problem from multiple viewpoints and help others do so as well
- are able to flexibly apply theoretical tools to practical, contemporary challenges
- are trained to analyze information critically and facilitate wise decision-making
- are prepared to motivate and model effective participatory action, even in situations where they may not hold formal positions of authority
- are aware that situations most requiring leadership are dynamic and often atypical
- realize that controversy and community need not trade off in difficult situations
- have resources to analyze and address complex public problems
Mailing Address:
PO Box 413
Milwaukee, Wi 53201
Physical Address:
2512 E. Hartford Avenue
Johnston Hall Room 210
Milwaukee, Wi 53211
Phone: 414-229-4261
Fax: 414-229-3859
E-mail: kolson@uwm.edu