The William C. Foster ’62 Center for Responsible Leadership, established in 2016, strives to educate and inspire leaders in business and society who embrace the Catholic Franciscan values that have guided St. Bonaventure University since its founding in 1858.
The center seeks to ensure that St. Bonaventure students have the opportunity to develop as responsible leaders with grounding in our distinctive Franciscan values.
“Professionalism and ethical mindfulness are critical characteristics that have the potential to transform the corporate climate across all functional areas. The Foster Center for Responsible Leadership provides a means for individuals to engage and interact in ways that stimulate forward thinking and deliberate actions focused on fiscal and social responsibility,” said Matrecia James, Ph.D., dean of the School of Business.
The center promotes cross-discipline scholarship in the Franciscan intellectual tradition, with a particular focus on its application to issues of responsible leadership. It strives to integrate Franciscan values with business and civic leadership.
"The core of our program is to provide support, guidance and training designed to help individuals establish or strengthen their ethical consciousness," said James. “We want to help develop leaders who recognize and accept responsibility for creating and fostering positive outcomes.”
The center will offer educational materials, practices and programs designed to develop responsible leadership. Students will be offered the opportunity to attend retreats, informal dinner gatherings, workshops and panel discussions, all designed to explore the possibilities of leadership through Catholic Franciscan values. In a similar way, the center will offer professional development to the community at large through continuing education, offering certificate programs for continued professional development.
Students will be offered the opportunity to travel, attend other programs that embrace ethics and leadership, and engage in academic competitions and conferences.
The center will also offer an ongoing speaker series to scholars and civic leaders who embrace Franciscan tradition and seek dialogue on leadership, ethics, and social justice.
The William C. Foster '62 Center for Responsible Leadership is made possible through an endowment gift by Daria L. Foster, Managing Partner of Lord, Abbett & Co. LLC, honoring her late husband, William C. Foster, '62. Mr. Foster served on St. Bonaventure's Board of Trustees from 2008 until his passing in 2010.