The Cross-Cultural Leadership Center’s EMPOWER program is seeking students with a desire to better themselves and the communities they represent.

The program will consist of five sessions and is designed to build up leaders in communities of color. Although, the program welcomes all applicants, the CCLC hopes to attract self-identified leaders within the Latino, African American and Asian Pacific communities. Each session will emphasize topics, such as community building, inclusiveness, public speaking, identity, confidence and the development of goals.

EMPOWER aims to reach students who are already currently leading or involved in cultural organizations.

Karla Guzman, one of the coordinators leading the program, believes EMPOWER will be effective due to its unconventional approach of building leadership skills in a group environment.

“EMPOWER is more than just a leadership program, it’s about equipping leaders with leadership tools through a cultural lens,” Guzman said.

According to CCLC’s website, the group meetings intend to build stronger relationships and eventually lead to more honest conversation.

The CCLC has put forth similar programs to target certain communities in the past, but the on-campus organization is now trying to modernize its approach and reach out to specific students instead.

In doing so, CCLC members aspire to teach students about how leadership roles vary on a case-to-case basis and how leaders must learn to adapt to each situation differently.

Amanuel Gebre, a student coordinator of EMPOWER, sees the program as a way for individuals to develop themselves while also furthering the organization they serve.

“EMPOWER is dedicated to guiding and facilitating a conversation for leaders on campus to further develop their own identity and their own organization as much as possible,” Gebre said. “The origins are, if there is a need, we’re gonna meet that need.”

Coordinators will encourage participants to stay in touch with the CCLC, even after the semester-long program ends, to continue aiding them through college obstacles.

Applications can be found on the CCLC’s Wildcat Sync webpage. They only take about 15 minutes to complete and are due by Oct. 10.

Upon completing the application, the individual must go to CCLC’s office in Meriam Library 172, within 24 hours after submission, to schedule a 20 minute interview.

Participants chosen for the program will be expected to attend bimonthly meetings every Wednesday from 6 p.m. to 8. p.m.

The CCLC office is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Yaritza Ayon can be reached at [email protected] or @ayon_yaritza on Twitter.