Spark Leadership Conference provides unique leadership examples for GU students

Published: May 17, 2023

A student-run Greenville University conference on Christian leadership that had been put on hold for the past four years because of the COVID-19 pandemic was resumed this year by the Greenville Student Government Association.

“We wanted to bring back the Spark Leadership Conference because we believe that students should know about leadership before they graduate,” said Paige Bennett, student body president. “GSGA puts on several fun events during the year, but opportunities like this help students to grow and improve their leadership skills.”

The conference was launched in 2014, but hadn’t been held since 2018, Bennett said. 

This year’s event featured nine speakers over two days. Those speakers (and the topics they addressed) include: Jane Bell (pictured at left), “Imitate Paul”; Bennett and Coach Trey Stille, “Confrontation and Consequences in Leadership”; Rob Clark, “Building Connections for Success and Betting on Yourself”; GU President Suzanne Davis (pictured at right), “Take the Long View of Leadership”; Bri Dothager, “Building Trust for a Successful Start”; Charity Stafford, “Connected to the Vine”; Free Methodist District Superintendent Ben Tolly, “The Christian and Workplace Crisis”; and the Rev. Tyson Graber, “Servant Leadership.”

“This conference provided a unique opportunity for students,” Bennett added. “They can’t get this type of instruction and interaction with these people without this event. We were pleased with the response, as we had 40 to 50 students at each session.”