HOUGHTON -- What does it take to be an effective student leader?

Twenty female high school students participated in various activities on the campus of Michigan Tech to enhance their leadership qualities.

“I learned that to be a leader you need to know all of the different styles of leadership. You need to know how people work and you need to fit them together,” said Calumet High School junior Kari Oja.

Students placed themselves into one of the four social styles: controller, analyzer, socializer or supporter. Then they split into groups and walked outside for a game.

With seven pieces of string tied to a ring students had to work together to keep a tennis ball from falling to the ground.

STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and math and this is the first year Tech is hosting the Leadership Institute.

With a current female enrollment population at 26 percent, MTU’s goal is to increase that number to 35 percent over the next eight years.

“It’s very important to have female students not just on campus but in STEM fields and we know that from tradition women don’t always think of these as the first choice option for them so we definitely want to encourage that,” said Director of Admissions Allison Carter.

Some of the current female Michigan Tech students who are involved in a variety of on campus organizations were also on hand to help mentor the high school students.

“I think when you’re in high school a lot of times you don’t realize what’s out there in the world especially once you get to college and I think showing them that leadership is important and you can learn from it now and in the future shows that they have so many opportunities waiting for them,” said Michigan Tech student Anne Francois.

This event also gives students a better understanding of themselves as they move towards their career goals.