Iacocca Institute
Source: Lehigh University
Description: The Iacocca Institute leads innovative programs that combine immersion in an extremely diverse living community with learning experiences in entrepreneurship, leadership and more. We offer summer programs for adults and high school students from the United States and around the world and custom programs with partner organizations.
In partnership with Lee Iacocca ’45, Lehigh University founded the Iacocca Institute in 1988 to help prepare the next generation of leaders to thrive in a global economy, with the belief that successful leadership in the 21st century would require a deep understanding of different cultures and countries and comfort working across boundaries and borders.
In 1997, the Institute launched its flagship program: the Global Village, an immersive intercultural learning experience focused on global business and leadership skills. The Global Village brings university students and professionals from around the world to Lehigh for five weeks each summer to learn how to work across cultures and lead in a global community. Today, the Global Village alumni network now includes more than 2,000 successful leaders from 135 countries.
The Iacocca Institute has used the success of the Global Village to launch the Iacocca Global Entrepreneurship Intensive, for American and international high school students, and Global Village on the Move, which works with global partner organizations to bring programs to cities around the world. The Institute also works with partner organizations around the world to develop custom programs. For example, in 2017, the Iacocca Institute hosted 25 emerging young professionals from 16 African nations through the Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders.