James R. Coffman Leadership Institute

The James R. Coffman Leadership Institute (CLI) serves as a launching point for continuous leadership development, professional networking, and empowerment of K-State professionals. This institute offers faculty and unclassified staff a unique opportunity to refresh and enhance their leadership skills and knowledge through in-person facilitation over the course of three days.

View photos from the 2025 event on Facebook.

Nominations open for 2026

Nominations are due Friday, March 6, and should be submitted via the online nomination form.

The 2026 event will take place Tuesday, July 28 through Thursday, July 30.

Faculty and unclassified professionals may self-nominate, or a supervisor may nominate an employee for consideration. In the case of a self-nomination, the nominee's dean, director or department head will be asked to confirm their support for the nominee.

All applicants should be available to attend the institute in its entirety and be in good standing with their department. Please do not nominate individuals who have previously attended the institute, or self-nominate without confirming the support of your supervisor beforehand.

Purpose of the Institute

The three primary objectives of this institute are:

• Provide opportunity for participants to refresh and develop their leadership skills in a safe yet challenging learning environment.
• Provide an opportunity for networking and interdisciplinary cooperation for faculty and staff.
• Infuse Kansas State University with more empowered faculty and staff leaders.

Building relationships

An essential key for leadership success in any organization is the ability to build good relationships with members of the organization. Institute participants will have the opportunity to explore and initiate collaborative projects and discuss leadership issues. They will also have the chance to strengthen current relationships and to build new ones with other professionals at K-State.

Recognizing your leadership style

The James R. Coffman Leadership Institute is based on the philosophy that every individual can be a successful leader. This success depends on learning leadership skills as well as recognition of one’s leadership style. Further refining of one’s leadership style, understanding its associated strengths and challenges as well as its impact on decision-making, conflict resolution, and problem-solving preferences will be a major focus of the institute.

Institute format

Learning activities are arranged to maximize participant learning and engage all learning styles.

Topics may include:

• Conflict resolution
• Change management
• Leadership style assessment
• Shared leadership
• Team building

Formats may include:

• Workshops
• Panel discussions
• Small and large group activities
• Small group discussions
• Presentations
• Case studies
• Self-assessments

What to expect

Participants will have the opportunity to engage in a focused and in-depth adult learning experience aimed at leadership development. They will be offered knowledge and skill-based learning modules to engage them cognitively as well as behaviorally.

Attendees will also have the opportunity to interact with other professionals who want to make a difference at K-State. Conference activities will take place at K-State’s Manhattan campus and in the local Manhattan community. As a feature of the retreat, participants will get to experience and interact with different parts of the campus and community.

For questions, or for a list of past participants, please email leadership@ksu.edu.