During Summer Training, the Presidential Fellows had the pleasure of meeting with the newly minted GW president, Dr. Thomas LeBlanc. The fellows, advising team, and President LeBlanc spent some time getting to know one another with an icebreaker (in which we learned President LeBlanc has eaten a reptile and would like the opportunity to create a society on another planet), and then transitioned into a back-and-forth Q&A. President LeBlanc was very interested in the history and processes of the Presidential Fellowship.The fellows were able to explain our experiences in the program and the opportunities we have had to contribute to the university.
Additionally, the fellows asked President LeBlanc about his vision for GW. While he has several areas he plans to target for improvement, he articulated his goal for GW as “aspir[ing] to preeminence as a comprehensive, global, research university.” The Presidential Fellows, as President LeBlanc prefers to call us, are excited by the opportunity to help him reach this goal. We are looking forward to several engagements with him, and other GW administrators, throughout the upcoming year to share our insights and help GW reach preeminence. We are also looking forward to introducing him to the broader PAFamily during upcoming alumni activities.