LSI will welcome more than 65 Fellows across its three pathways in the year ahead. This year’s LSI Fellows bring extraordinary depth of leadership across institutions, industries, and society.
This autumn, the University of Chicago Leadership & Society Initiative (LSI) welcomes its fourth cohort into its immersive fellowship experience – the Design Pathway. The selected Fellows join a vibrant and expanding community of changemakers who are redefining what it means to lead with purpose following a successful career and to create meaningful next chapters for themselves and for society.
These LSI Fellows represent leadership across the full spectrum of the economy, including the private, public, and civic sectors. Their distinguished careers span healthcare, financial services, insurance, technology, law, consulting, real estate, manufacturing, public policy, and beyond. They have played meaningful roles in corporate boardrooms and grassroots community efforts, driving innovation for the climate, global supply chains, higher education, workforce development, and the arts. They have guided Fortune 500 companies through moments of transition, founded and grown companies, shaped the public discourse, influenced legislation, and advanced social and environmental impact around the world.
“We are living in a new era of human possibility. As lifespans extend and leaders remain vibrant and engaged well into what was once considered retirement age, LSI exists to make sure that longer lives mean greater purpose, discovery, and positive impact for society,” said Seth Green, Dean of the University of Chicago Graham School.
The Design Pathway offers an expansive, customizable experience for Fellows who are ready to pursue their next chapter of purpose. Through a holistic immersion at the University of Chicago, Fellows engage with LSI’s interdisciplinary curriculum, audit courses from across the University, learn alongside accomplished peers, and receive individualized guidance as they consider where their experience and talents can make a meaningful contribution.
“Something remarkable happens when you bring together accomplished leaders at the height of their wisdom and ask them to think rigorously about values, motivation, and purpose — not for themselves alone, but for the world around them,” said Diana Petty, Executive Director of the Leadership & Society Initiative. “The LSI curriculum is built on the premise that examining complex questions through multiple disciplinary lenses – and embracing the productive friction created by divergent views – is where genuine insight tends to live. For Fellows who have earned their authority in one domain over many decades, this structure is both a challenge and a revelation, and we believe this equips Fellows to lead with purpose and impact in whatever comes next.”
The fellowship experience culminates in a Next Chapter Roadmap outlining key actions for living and leading purposefully based on each Fellow’s unique values and opportunities for meaningful contribution.
LSI is also preparing to welcome its second cohort of Fellows in the Imagine Pathway in January 2027. The Imagine Pathway provides reflective moments of pause for Fellows who are still engaged in day-to-day responsibilities and want to begin envisioning what’s next. Fellows come together quarterly to reflect on their experiences and imagine a fulfilling future, culminating in a Next Chapter Compass that helps clarify their motivations, decision criteria, and aspirations ahead.
We are also proud to welcome four LSI Fellows into this year’s Activate Pathway, who are advancing the Next Chapter Roadmaps they created in their first year of the fellowship: Alice Davison, Gil Latz, Robert Diaz, and Buffy Higgins-Beard. Through ongoing engagement with UChicago resources and customized curriculum, these Fellows are beginning to implement their visions and bring their ideas from concept to reality across social connection and healthy aging, affordable housing advocacy, suburban poverty intervention, and the revitalization of U.S.-Japan academic and policy infrastructure.
With more than 100 Fellows now part of LSI and more than 65 Fellows participating in the year ahead, the Design, Imagine, and Activate Pathways are building a growing community of accomplished leaders exploring how their experience and talents can contribute to purposeful next chapters and meaningful impact.
The University of Chicago Leadership & Society Initiative supports accomplished leaders in successfully transitioning from their longstanding careers toward purposeful next chapters. LSI Fellows immerse themselves in UChicago’s unparalleled environment of big ideas and multigenerational dialogue, gaining frameworks for learning from their past and planning for their futures.
Through LSI’s rigorous and customizable curriculum, Fellows engage with eminent faculty and expert practitioners to explore how their next chapter can be meaningful for them and for society. This fellowship is a commitment to personal growth, enduring wellness, and dynamic engagement with pressing societal issues.
Visit leadforsociety.uchicago.edu to learn more about LSI or submit your candidacy to be considered for our upcoming cohort.
Fellows in the Leadership and Society Initiative Imagine Pathway returned to Hyde Park for four days of rigorous inquiry, community, and deepening clarity about the next chapters they are working to shape.
The Leadership and Society Initiative welcomes two new team members, Michelle Argento and Kelly Morgan, who will strengthen recruitment and program operations as the Initiative continues to grow and expand opportunities for leaders pursuing purpose-driven next chapters.
Fellows returned to campus for four days of rigorous inquiry, renewed connection, and deepening clarity about the motivations and intentions for future leadership.