The Center is named for Lt.
General Samuel V. Wilson,
22nd President of HampdenSydney College. “General
Sam” retired as the Director
of the Defense Intelligence
Agency in 1977, after having
served in various intelligence
and defense positions for the
American military for 37
years. He is well known for
his foundational work in
developing strategy for lowintensity conflict; for coining
the term “counterinsurgency”;
and for helping to create
the US Special Operations
Command and Delta Force,
the U.S. Army’s premier
counterterrorism unit.
Hampden-Sydney College
established the Wilson Center for
Leadership in the Public Interest
in 1996. Named for the College’s
President from 1992 to 2000, Lt.
Gen. Samuel V. Wilson (U.S. Army,
Ret.), the Center oversees leadership,
public service, and civic education
for Hampden-Sydney students,
faculty, staff, and alumni, area high
school teachers and students, and a
variety of community and national
educational organizations.
PR O G R A M S
The James Madison Public Service
Certificate Program
This interdisciplinary academic
track was created in the early 1990s
for students interested in careers
with government agencies and nonprofit organizations. In addition
to classes in public administration,
ethics, public policy, and public
speaking, students in this program
are required to complete a summer
internship and a research project.
Jerry Boykin
Lt Gen (Ret), US Army
Wheat Professor of
Leadership
The Society of ’91 Leadership Program
The Office of the Dean of Students
created this program in 1997 to
assist students who hold or seek to
pursue positions of authority with
campus organizations. The program
meets bi-weekly for discussions and
leadership exercises and also for several
off-campus retreats. The Society of
’91 is named for the Class of 1791,
whose eight members included a
future President of the United States,
a Supreme Court Justice, a Senator, a
Governor, and a General.
The Internship Program
The Wilson Center actively assists
students in finding internships in
government, military, or security
organizations, and it provides
The Freshmen Leadership Program scholarships to help cover the expenses
The Freshman Leadership Program for students who pursue internships
in fields related to the Wilson Center’s
begins with a two-day workshop
mission. Hampden-Sydney students
before orientation, featuring a
have used these resources to intern
Harvard case study and sessions
in the White House, the European
with Wilson Center faculty, all
focused on the practical exploration Parliament, The House of Lords,
The Military Leadership and
The Fulbright Office in Prague, and
of leadership. Meeting formally
National Security Studies Program twice a semester, and informally
American Embassies in Brazil, Turkey,
This interdisciplinary program was several additional times, the
and England.
established in 2004 for students
program organizes sessions to help
interested in graduate work or
students appreciate the importance ROTC
careers in international relations,
ROTC has an office in the Wilson
of self-understanding and context
national security, or intelligence
Center. Hampden-Sydney students
for successful leadership. Students
agencies. Students examine national interact with alumni who have
are eligible to participate in the
security and military policy in the
been successful leaders in business Spider Battalion with students
contexts of constitutional principles, and the law, take the Myers-Briggs from Longwood, Richmond, VCU,
inter- and intra-governmental
Randolph-Macon, and Virginia Union.
Personality Type Indicator, and
relationships, and competing views compete in an organizational
of ethical human behavior.
simulation.
T H E W I L S O N C E N T E R S TA F F
Samuel V. Wilson
Lt Gen (Ret),
US Army, CIA, DIA
“Good men are
naturally inclined
to serve the larger
community.
At the Wilson Center
for Leadership in the
Public Interest,
they will become
well-prepared
to do so.”
Dr. Jim Simms
Professor, History
LT. GENERAL
SAMUEL V. WILSON
(U.S. ARMY, RET)
Dr. Curt Smith
Professor,
Government
Rucker Snead ’81
Lt Col (Ret), US Army
Dir. of External Relations;
Dir. of Career Development
Dr. John Eastby
Professor,
Government
Dr. David Marion
Professor, History;
Director of Academic
Programs
Dr. V. Dale Jones
Wilson Center Fellow
May Reed
Assistant to
the Director