Tusty ten Bensel, graduate coordinator in the Department of Criminal Justice at UA Little Rock, recently completed the Women in Education Leadership program conducted by the Harvard Graduate School of Education. 

The Women in Education Leadership program, held March 4-6 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, convened senior leaders interested in strengthening their leadership skills in education initiatives.

“As a faculty member who is transitioning into a leadership role, it was a great networking and educational opportunity for me,” she said. “This is my first year as graduate coordinator, and I am growing into my role as a leader and I wanted to learn best practices from nationally renowned leaders at Harvard University.”

The three-day interactive program is geared toward female leaders in higher education and K-12 schools. It focuses on how female leaders can effectively navigate multiple responsibilities and constituencies, and it provides a unique opportunity for growth and renewal among diverse yet like-minded women.

Ten Bensel learned how to identify the unique leadership challenges and opportunities facing women in education today, how successful women negotiate for what they need to be effective leaders, and gained new strategies for building and inspiring leadership teams.

“This was a great opportunity to hear from current women leaders from all over the world,” ten Bensel said. “I learned so much about how to be a leader, how to negotiate situations, how to expand my network, and how to help my department and the university grow.”