The Fritzky Behind the Fritzky Fellowship and the Positive Impact on Foster
Ten years ago the Fritzky family recognized the need for supporting the Foster School of Business MBA students in their development as leaders by establishing the Fritzky Leadership Fellowship.
The Fritzky Fellowship is a highly interactive one-year cohort based practicum designed to provide in-depth support for first year MBA students and second year MBA Fellows. The focus is on learning and applying leadership and team development practices to support positive change and growth in individuals, teams, and the Foster MBA program.
The Fritzky Leadership Fellows are second-year, full-time MBA students in the UW Foster School of Business. Fellows work closely with each other in their Fellow cohort supported by faculty and staff from the Center for Leadership and Strategic Thinking (CLST). Together they focus on the Fellows leadership development, coaching skills and team development.
Fellows are instrumental in supporting the first year MBA students adjusting to Foster, enhancing their first year student leadership, team capabilities and overall experience. The Fellows and CLST work with faculty members and staff charged with onboarding first year MBA students into the Foster community.
The Fellow application and selection process is made up of a three-stage process. This begins each January with a call to action for first year students to apply to the Fritzky Fellowship with selection occurring before Spring break. Special attention is given to ensuring the program selects and supports a diverse range of backgrounds and experience in the Fellow’s cohort. This selection process and committee represent a collaborative exchange and is composed of members from CLST, the MBA Career Development Office, second year MBA Fellows, and the MBA Program office.
Fritzky Leadership Fellows attend two transitions workshops in the Spring. This is followed by a weeklong immersion session in September to onboard into the program and Fellow role, along with a weekly Leadership Development Practicum course in both Fall and Winter quarters.
The annual evaluations from first year MBA students consistently calls out the positive impact the Fellows have on the first-year student experience. Student testimonies of encouragement, empowerment, and guidance are key themes captured. Year after year Fellows call out that being a Fritzky Fellow is one of the best decisions they have made in terms of their participation in the Foster experience, and the impact it has on developing their leadership.
Watch the video above to hear from Ed Fritzky; this is from the 2020 Fellows Spring Transition meeting where outgoing cohort handoff to the incoming new cohort.
