The Leading Edge Institute is the only nine-month, service-learning based leadership development program for Alabama college women. We unite female students from Alabama's colleges and universities with vibrant leaders and change agents in the fields of social change, education, business, policy, and community development. Students engage in an experiential curriculum that helps build effective, ethical, and compassionate citizen leaders. The women are placed in an environment to enhance their leadership skills, expose them to community and state issues, prepare them for community involvement, and introduce them to community leaders through mentoring relationships.