A Cowboy's Guide to Leadership

Programs

We are excited to announce that Program Session Proposals are officially open!

Deadline to Submit: September 29th at 8:00 AM
Notification of Selected Presenters: By noon on October 2nd

This is your chance to showcase your best showmanship! Share what makes your school unique and amazing, and help us create a “best in show” residential experience together! We can’t wait to see your creativity and passion shine.

Program Submission

Leadership Development

This track focuses on strengthening the skills that make effective and inspiring leaders. Sessions in this area explore leadership styles, conflict resolution, communication, identity in leadership, and strategies for building impactful communities.

Programming & Resident Engagement

Designed for the creative and community-minded, this track dives into successful program planning, event execution, and innovative ways to connect residents. Share or discover strategies that foster sense of belonging, increase participation, and make your halls come alive.

Training & Curriculum

If you’re passionate about preparing student staff or enhancing peer learning, this track is for you. Presentations here explore effective training models, curriculum design, ongoing education, and best practices for developing high-performing residential teams.

Personal & Professional Development

Focused on the whole student leader, this track supports growth beyond your current role. Topics may include time management, self-care, networking, job and grad school prep, and navigating the transition from student leader to professional.

Programs Tracks

Advisor Track

This track is dedicated to the professional staff, faculty, and advisors who mentor and support student leaders. Sessions here will provide strategies for effectively guiding student staff, fostering leadership development, and building strong partnerships between student leaders and staff. It’s a space to share insights, best practices, and innovative approaches to advising and supporting student leadership programs.

Spirit Section

Spirit Points

Spirit Points are a fun way to recognize student engagement and school pride during the conference. Teams earn points for participating in activities such as engaging with the FGCU Housing/FHO Instagram, collecting clothes pins, submitting a chanting video, joining the Swap Shop, and contributing to philanthropy efforts. The more involved and spirited the team, the more points they score!

Spirit Theme Days:

Friday: School Pride Day with a Coastal Cowboy Twist
- Show off your school colors and spirit gear, then add a little cowboy or coastal flair.
Saturday: Coastal Cowboy Day
- Break out the cowboy boots, hats, and western-inspired looks—add a coastal touch to tie it all together.

Spirit Tracker

Clothes Pins

Decorate wooden clothespins with your school spirit and exchange them with other students throughout the conference. This tradition is a way to connect, build community, and take home a reminder of new friendships made.

Clothes Pins Themes:
- Cowfolk Coastin’: The clothespins that have the best coastal and cowboy theme. 
- Best “Pin” Show: The clothespins with the most creative pin. 
- Most Wanted: The clothespins that is the most sought after by delegates and advisors !

Clothes Pins Submissions

Swap Shop

The Swap Shop is a fun and interactive space where students can bring merchandise from their home institutions like T-shirts, hats, pens, stickers, etc. and exchange them with other schools. It’s a great way to showcase campus pride, make new connections, and leave the conference with unique souvenirs from across the region.

Spirit Video

Coastal Cowboy Spirit Showcase: Video Submissions:

Each institution is invited to submit a short video (this can be a song, skit, dance, chant, presentation, or any spirited creation) that highlights your school’s energy, introduces your delegation, and connects to this year’s Coastal Cowboy conference theme.

Videos will be featured during Opening Ceremonies.

Guidelines:

Length: 3 minutes or less
Content: Keep it appropriate—no foul language, explicit, or suggestive material
Respect: Do not disrespect or criticize other institutions

Submissions are due by 8:00 AM on October 6th, 2025!

Rubric:

Video Submission

Awards

The Chantin' Champion Award:

This award goes to the crew that took the stage like true cowboys of the coast, delivering a chant so bold it carried across the entire conference. With the spirit of a housing team and the energy of champions, you captured the spotlight and had everyone cheering along. You proved that when voices unite, the whole room listens. Ride on, raise your voice, and never hold back!

First Rodeo Award:

This must be the team’s first time attending the LEAP conference. The team demonstrates strong enthusiasm and eagerness to participate in all spirit-related activities, including creating videos, performing chants, and wearing themed outfits that reflect the conference spirit.

The Ride and Rally Award:

Recognizes the delegation that goes above and beyond in spirit, energy, and full participation throughout the entire conference. This team doesn’t just show up they show out, and rally loud. 

The Coastal Cleanup Award:

Honors the school that wrangles the most waste and leaves our conference cleaner than they found it. Delegates can earn this award by collecting trash throughout the weekend and submitting their finds through the Litteratti app.

Socials

Explore various student leader programs and engaging social events at the LEAP conference. Connect with like-minded individuals and enhance your leadership skills.

Boots & Bites Bash

Join us after Opening Ceremony for an evening of bites from local food trucks, coastal crafts, lively yard games, and line dancing by the sandy shore.

And if that’s not enough, test your skills and see if you’ve got what it takes to wrangle our gators!

Workshops & Sessions

Take part in interactive workshops and thought-provoking sessions designed to equip you with the knowledge and skills to thrive both personally and professionally.

Community Engagement

Get involved in community engagement activities at LEAP, contribute to meaningful causes and make a positive impact through our Litteratti philanthropic efforts.

Philanthropy

Here at FGCU, we regularly host clean-ups both on and off campus to keep our environment as pristine as possible. To track these efforts, we use Litterati—a free mobile app that empowers individuals and communities to fight litter through data-driven action. By photographing and tagging pieces of litter, users contribute to a global database that helps measure and map litter distribution worldwide.

This year, we want to see what impact all of us cowfolk can have across our home state! From October 1st through October 9th, we encourage you to complete a clean-up on your campus and in your hometown. Every piece of litter collected not only makes a difference locally but also contributes to a statewide effort to create lasting change.

At our Opening Ceremony, we’ll reveal just how much trash we wrangled together—and celebrate the collective impact of LEAP + Litterati on the state of Florida!

Coastal Cowboy Cleanup Code: LEAP2025

More info, how to:

Download Litterati on iOS or Android.
Create an account and allow camera and location access.
Join the LEAP statewide challenge using our join code — Coastal Cowboy Cleanup Code: LEAP2025
Pick your spot: on campus or in your hometown.
Gear up: gloves, trash/recycling bags, closed-toe shoes (grabber optional).
Snap each item: open the app camera and take one clear photo per piece of litter.
Tag it: add Object, Material, and Brand (or confirm LitterAI’s suggestions).
Dispose properly: recycle or trash items safely; wash/sanitize hands.
Upload your captures (Wi-Fi helps if service is spotty).
Track impact: check your stats and our team totals in the app.
Share the spirit (optional): post progress and tag FGCU Housing/FHO for spirit points.