Gwynedd Mercy Academy’s L.E.A.D Program Develops Tomorrow’s Leaders

11/6/20—Gwynedd Mercy Academy High School’s L.E.A.D. program gives girls the tools they need to gain confidence, find their voices, and become tomorrow’s leaders.

Gwynedd Mercy alumna Jennifer Cervone Guarnaccia ’93 returned to her alma mater to oversee the school’s leadership initiatives through a program fittingly known as L.E.A.D. (Learn, Educate, Achieve, Develop). Leadership emerged as one of five priority areas during development of Gwynedd Mercy’s five-year strategic plan, which was released in 2019. The strategic plan, which was shepherded by Gwynedd Mercy’s President Denis Corkery Marback ’72, consists of five pillars that included education (mind, body, and spirit), leadership, wellness, connection, and vitality.

The goal of the L.E.A.D. program is “to educate and empower young women to become ethical, courageous leaders of action and conviction.”

“Educating, inspiring, and empowering women has always been a part of our culture and Mercy roots, but now we’re more intentional and purposeful in what we deliver and how we deliver it,” Guarnaccia said. “Our girls need to be prepared to lead when they leave these halls, and they are better prepared for today’s world and challenges.”

One aspect of L.E.A.D. allows Gwynedd Mercy students to become leadership certified through the Lead4Change Student Leadership Program. The 12-lesson curriculum is designed to integrate leadership training, collaboration, and community service into the classroom as a way to effect change. In the first year of Gwynedd Mercy student participating in Lead4Change, four students won program grants and qualified for the national competition, making them the only girls’ school winners.

Click here to read “Ready to Lead,” a feature article about Gwynedd Mercy’s L.E.A.D. program that ran in Suburban Life magazine.