Source: Liberty Fellowship

"GREENVILLE, SC—Liberty Corporation, Wofford College and The Aspen Institute have announced the launch of Liberty Fellowship, a two-year leadership program designed to empower the state and its future leaders to realize their full potential. Liberty Fellowship promotes values-based leadership by exposing young South Carolina leaders between the ages of 25 and 45 to critical thinking, diverse perspectives, skilled mentorship and camaraderie. The curriculum is modeled on The Aspen Institute’s internationally renowned Henry Crown Fellowship. From Fall 2004 through Spring 2006, Liberty Fellows will study classic texts, participate in moderated discussions, and bond with other Fellows at seminars held at The Aspen Institute, Wofford College, and a site in the Low Country. At biannual gatherings, Fellows will meet South Carolina’s leading business and political officials, academic and opinion leaders. Each Liberty Fellow will also initiate a community project to enhance South Carolina. “Our goal is to endow South Carolina’s next generation of leaders with a lifelong commitment to civic responsibility, integrity and enterprise,” said Jennie Johnson, Liberty Fellowship’s Executive Director. “The focus will be on rising young leaders with significant potential to become positive contributors to our state, conduct business with an open mind, manage relationships with diverse constituencies, and motivate others through visionary leadership.” Through March 2004, Liberty Fellowship is seeking nominations for the Class of 2004. The chosen group of 20 Fellows, whose participation is at no cost to themselves, will be successful South Carolina’s business, non-profit or government leaders who wish to make a difference in the state’s future. Since candidates cannot apply to the program, Liberty Fellowship will select the Class of 2004 from candidates nominated by recognized, well-established leaders. According to Hayne Hipp, Chair and CEO of Liberty Corporation, “Liberty Fellowship is a shared effort to cultivate the next generation of community-spirited visionaries. The Fellowship offers today’s leaders an opportunity to demonstrate a mark of true leadership - furthering one’s legacy by ensuring sustained, outstanding leadership in South Carolina.” “Although the Aspen Institute has established prestigious alliances in such places as Germany, Italy, and Japan, the Liberty Fellowship is the first partnership in the United States,” said Benjamin Dunlap, President of Wofford College and longtime Aspen moderator. “As such it represents a unique opportunity for South Carolina. Nothing is of greater importance to this state than developing a network of truly enlightened leaders, the goal of this program.”"