Wharton Leadership Ventures at the University of Monterrey, Mexico (UDEM)
March 7 – 14, 2010
Watch a video of the 2009 venture here.
Join the Wharton Leadership Ventures team for a week of active leadership development in collaboration with the Leadership and Challenge Center of the University of Monterrey (UDEM), Mexico. The UDEM campus will be our base camp for the week. Lodging will be on the UDEM campus.
- Network with UDEM undergraduates in both informal and structured dialogues
- Experience the on-campus leadership challenge course (the largest of its kind in Mexico) under the direction of the leadership staff of the Leadership and Challenge Center at UDEM
- Enjoy a two-day multi-sport leadership camp in a beautiful natural setting in the mountains of Santiago, Nuevo Leon
- Collaborate on a social impact project with a local women’s cooperative affiliated with UDEM
- Enjoy a very special leadership seminar and dinner at the home of celebrated Mexican high-altitude mountaineer, Alex Villarreal. Alex, a graduate of UDEM, has climbed three of the world’s highest peaks, including Mt. Everest.
- Explore the local culture, and enjoy a special closing dinner at a fine Monterrey restaurant.
Monterrey is the third largest city in Mexico, and is a major center of industry, finance, and commerce as well as an important center of culture and education. The city is situated in a valley and is surrounded by four main mountains: Cerro de la Silla (Saddle Mountain, the symbol of the city), Cerro de las Mitras, Sierra Madre Oriental, and Cerro del Topo Chico.
UDEM’s on-campus Challenge Center will be the site of a full-day leadership program guided by UDEM facilitators.
The Leadership Camp program provides a significant overnight adventure experience, with the purpose of developing emotional intelligence competencies, interpersonal relationships and teamwork skills. At a beautiful natural setting in the mountains of Santiago, Nuevo León, this 2-day program provides an opportunity for participants to practice leadership skills in an active and fun way. Activities include rappelling, hiking, and caving.
Venture Staff
Dr. Chris Maxwell organizes the UDEM-Mexico venture. Chris teaches Management 100 at Wharton and serves as faculty advisor for the Wharton Leadership Ventures Undergraduate Advisory Board. He has trekked through the Everest region of Nepal, hiked in Chilean Patagonia, and has climbed five of the major peaks in the Teton Range of Wyoming. Chris completed the National Outdoor Leadership School’s Pacific Northwest Trip Leader Program in 2002.
Xenia Kolesnikov is a junior at the Wharton School concentrating in Management and Marketing. She is half Russian and half Ecuadorian, currently living in the States. She has traveled and hiked in many regions of the world such as Peru and Tibet. She is the first coordinator for the Mexico venture and serves as a member of the Student Advisory Board of Wharton Leadership Ventures, Undergraduate Division.
Dr. Kathy Maxwell is an academic adviser and health instructor at Penn State University. Kathy began her career as a surgical nurse, and earned bachelors and masters degrees in nursing and health education, and a doctorate in adult education. In addition to her nursing training she is certified as an EMT. Kathy has hiked and trekked in Nepal and the Cascades, and has climbed in the Teton Range.
WLV 2009 at Cascada del Chipitin
WLV 2009 waterfall rappel
WLV 2009 on the challenge course
Colin Lee, W11, on the 2009 challenge course
Xenia Kolesnikov, W10, on the 2009 caving expedition
Relaxing in camp after the 2009 caving expedition
WLV 2009 at the Monterrey, Mexico home of Mt. Everest climber Alex Villarreal (front row)
Wharton Leadership Ventures are active learning experiences focused on enhancing team leadership skills. Dates and registration procedures for all events are announced through The Wharton Exchange electronic newsletter.
To join the advisory board or to serve as an event coordinator, contact Dr. Chris Maxwell at maxwellc@wharton.upenn.edu.
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