Universities Can Increase Student Leadership Engagement By Using Original Research from College Leadership Speaker Mike Fritz

PLAINWELL, Mich., Sept. 16, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Universities can create more engaged student leaders – who become active alumni – when they adopt a "F.U.N." mentality that fosters Friendship, Unique opportunities and Next-level team building, according to original research conducted by Mike Fritz, who has delivered more than 1,500 paid talks to colleges and has a master's degree in leadership.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140915/146180

"It's time to make leadership F.U.N. Teams that play together stay together. This is a proven fact in leadership research," said Fritz, the author of two bestselling books "Great Student Leaders Aren't Born - They're Made" and "Making Leadership F.U.N." 

"When students increase involvement in student organizations, groups keep their current leaders involved longer," said Fritz. "Alumni departments have long recognized that students who engage in activities and who participate as leaders stay connected to the schools long after they graduate. These student leaders continue to take active leadership roles in fundraising campaigns."

Fritz believes the answer is found in his F.U.N. program which helps to keep students engaged during their college years and provides a foundation for them to contribute to the university after they graduate. The elements of F.U.N. are:

• Friends: There is no greater glue than creating deep friendships to get people involved. "Even though I like Facebook as much as the next person, Facebook has redefined the word 'friend.' It has created an illusion that a friend is just a click away. We know that most of us only have a few true friends in our lifetime. This is the most powerful benefit of belonging to an organization," he said.
• Unique Opportunities: If you create members-only events that are open only to organizational leaders, other students will want to join so they can be part of the special group.
• Next-level structure: The longer students are involved in an organization the more responsibilities and benefits they receive. For example, in their first year on the team they help with events. In the second year they lead an event teams. In the third year they go to programming conferences. In the fourth year they are on the executive team where they can spearhead major decisions. "This keeps people involved longer because there is always something new to look forward to the next year," he said.

"Mike brings a unique technique for engaging and developing students leaders. His approach to leadership is all-encompassing and the students thoroughly enjoy every second of his presentation. Mike is the future of leadership," said Dakota Doman, Director of Student Life, University of Houston.

"Mike's presentation was amazing and hilarious.  These tips will help my activities team immensely," said Dustin Nix, Student, Texas A&M.

"I couldn't have asked for anything more to kick off my leadership program this year. You have set the bar high for programs to follow. Our students loved that Mike used humor to teach about leadership!  We will bring him back in the future," said Elaine Gisreal, Student Activities Coordinator at Harford Community College, Bel Air, Maryland.

To hire Mike Fritz to speak or consult about student involvement, student leadership and increased attendance at university events, go to www.mikefritz.net.

About Mike Fritz

Mike Fritz is on a mission to "Make Leadership Fun" for every student and adult alike. He believes that for far too long we have had to endure boring leadership seminars while staring at graphs and a stiff speaker sweating through his suit. Mike desires to put an end to this.

He maintains a 92% rebooking rate because he delivers interesting information with the laugh out loud humor of a standup comedian.

He has been called "An inspirational speaking god" by one of the students in his audience because he believes that humor, when coupled with inspiration, is the best way to learn about anything.

He has shared the stage with NFL quarterback and Super Bowl champion Joe Theismann, actor Glenn Morshower (Aaron Pierce on the hit TV show "24"), LA Clippers assistant coach Kevin Eastman and many others.

SOURCE Mike Fritz