June 25, 2025 |
GEL Students Learn Leadership – West Point Style
Alice Hall ’26 (Course 10) and Kayla Robertson ’26 (Course 2) are well-prepared for leadership roles as GEL2s… and beyond. In addition to excelling as GEL1s last year, they recently attended the McDonald Conference for Leaders of Character (MCLC). The conference is held annually at the United States Military Academy at West Point (USMA), which has been developing exceptional leaders for generations.
While the setting was imposing – the nation’s oldest engineering school (founded in 1802), granite edifices, historic monuments – Kayla and Alice were in familiar territory when it came to the leadership concepts they were learning.
“It was great to put what we’re learning in GEL, the leadership that we’re learning in GEL, the vocabulary that we’re using, into conversations with people that are doing similar things, people outside of our GEL bubble,” said Kayla.
“My group leader spoke about things that were completely aligned with the GEL curriculum, so I was able to ask thoughtful questions,” said Alice.
The GEL program regularly sends one or two top students to represent MIT at the MCLC, which was founded by benefactors The Honorable Robert A. “Bob” and Diane McDonald.
Robert A. McDonald served as Secretary of Veterans Affairs from 2014-1017. Previously, he was Chairman, President, and CEO of Procter & Gamble. He graduated from USMA in the top two percent of his class and served primarily with the 82nd Airborne Division.
The conference brings together undergraduate students from across the country and globe to improve their real-world leadership, critical thinking, and collaboration skills. West Point cadets also actively participate, making the experience truly unique.
“We started each day with optional PT (physical training) – since it is West Point – which we were able to join them on. We got to have a few meals in the historic Cadet Mess with all the cadets and interact with them. Two cadets were also part of each group.” said Kayla.
World and industry leaders are brought in to serve as group leaders – or Senior Fellows – who lead panel discussions and mentor students in small groups. Interacting with the likes of the CEO of LA28 and the COO of Ralph Lauren was a highlight for the GEL students.
“The types of talent that it attracts from the Senior Fellows was really impressive to me,” said Alice. “The Senior Fellows participated in panels where you could then ask them questions and then debrief within your small groups. GEL prepared me to know what to say and have the leadership vocabulary to have productive conversations with them.”
Meeting undergrads from other universities was another highlight of the conference. Both students said they will apply what they learned from students, cadets, and Senior Fellows to their GEL 2 roles and beyond.
“I came back with a clearer sense of what leadership is in big companies. They’re the people that are anchoring the culture of the companies. Now having spoken to a few CEOs and hearing them share their experiences through tough times and good times at their companies, I have a better idea of what they do and how their idea of leadership shapes their company,” said Kayla.
“It was really impactful to hear real world examples. These industry people are telling you stories of what happened to them. I was about to run for president (of MIT Undergraduate Association), and I was thinking a lot about the culture of the UA when I was having those conversations. The importance of culture was really hammered in and it’s something that I hope to bring to the rest of my leadership roles,” said Alice.
(Alice has since been elected MIT UA President for the coming academic year!)
The conference ended with a speech and discussion led by Reynold Hoover, Chief Executive Officer of the LA28 Olympic and Paralympic Games. “An amazing talk because it solidified all the principles that we had talked about before and how challenging that process is and how his outlook on his leadership helps,” said Kayla.
Followed by one more highlight of the weekend – Karaoke night. “Some of the Senior Fellows participated and I was singing Sweet Caroline with Bob McDonald, which was insane!” said Alice.
