Esther S. Gergen, MBA, PhD
Leadership Studies Department Chair
Professor of Leadership Studies
Main Building, Room 315
210-434-6711 ext. 6576
esgergen@ollusa.edu
Areas of Expertise
Dr. Gergen has conducted leadership development for several non-profit, corporate, and community organizations, served as an executive member on the Ethics Board for the City of San Antonio and the San Antonio Police Department Citizens Administrative Review Board, has published research in several academic journals, and has presented at a number of national and international conferences. Her qualitative and reflective scholarship is focused on authentic ways of leading that transcend gender and ethnicity stereotypes.
Teaching Philosophy
I hold true that the purpose of education is to awaken curiosity for questions about the world around us, create knowledge from what this curiosity discovers and empower the learner to utilize knowledge for the transformation of our world. I want to teach our adult professional learners to take the new information they encounter in the process of discovery and transform it into knowledge about the problems they are attempting to solve on their journey to becoming scholar practitioners. I believe our students learn best when we facilitate the application of their personal and professional experiences to the leadership theories, models and values we are trying to instill in them. My goal in the learning process is to create a space where students become aware of their own paradigms and are motivated to question these paradigms in the process of engaging in new and more effective ways of creating knowledge. Teaching classes and guiding dissertations is a calling for me and the joy I derive from observing the transformation of students into scholar practitioners is central to how I engage each and every student interaction.
Outside Interests
- Service to the community and City of San Antonio
- Leadership development within organizational and community settings
- Exploration of and writing about Authenticity in Leadership
- Cuisines of Mexico and the World
Memberships and Certifications
- Member of International Leadership Association
- Member of Hispanic Women's Network of Texas (SA Chapter)
- Certified through corporate training programs including, Leading People,
Human Resources and Labor Law Structures and Mediation - Licensed in Mutual Funds and Investment Products through NASD
Awards
- Sister Jane Ann Slater Servant Leadership Award
- Father John Moye Award
Education
- PhD - Leadership Studies, Our Lady of the Lake University
- Master of Business Administration - Management, Our Lady of the Lake University
- Bachelor of Business Administration - Marketing, Texas A&M University