Jimmy Carter’s impact on Georgia Southwestern State University

AMERICUS, Ga. (WALB) — Former President Jimmy Carter has left his legacy on the campus of Georgia Southwestern State University (GSW) where he attended college as a student.

You can feel the presence of Jimmy Carter when you step foot on campus.

“My biggest impact from that whole situation was that he was a great person, not just a great president, but a leader in general,” President Jimmy Carter Leadership Program Member, Jordan Whitening said.

Whitening is a member of the program, where he had a chance to meet former President Jimmy Carter.

Whitening saw firsthand the tactics he used during his presidency and how that shaped him into the leader he is today.

The President Jimmy Carter Leadership Program started in 2019 and is built on the core principles of leadership and personal growth. Students will learn some of the same values Carter believed.

“To teach students that there is a way to be a servant leader and to lead with your passion and with your purpose. And he certainly did not just as president but as a human being. He did that all around the world in a spectacular fashion, and so we try to live up to that legacy as an institution,” Neal Weaver, GSW president, said.

Jordan Whitening shares his experience as he will be part of the graduating cohort of the program, building up the next generation of leaders.

“How can we help others that may not have the same situation that we are able to have? And I feel like that embodies the whole life of Jimmy Carter,” Whitening said.

One value some takeaway from Carter’s presidency is the core value of honesty. Weaver hopes to instill this into the students at GSW.

“He was always honest. And we talk to students about you know you have a responsibility of being honest about who you are and what you are trying to accomplish. And if you approach leadership in a honest way, you understand yourself, the people you are leading and where you are trying to go,” Weaver said

Students at GSW say they will continue to uphold the values that Carter instilled during his life.

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