Shaping Leaders, Sparking Change
Access Furman Innovation Lab’s impactful certificates, graduate programs and institute-led initiatives in one place, where leadership meets creativity and ideas generate impact. Whether you’re ready to advance your career, initiate change in your organization, or drive progress in our community, you’ll find offerings and services embodying liberal arts in action.
The Innovation Lab prepares individuals and organizations to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing world. For 200 years, Furman has empowered learners through evidence-based research and community-centered learning. Today, that tradition continues beyond undergrad programs through a dynamic mix of courses and certificates offered by Furman’s institutes, graduate programs, and Center for Innovative Leadership.
From immersive leadership programs to graduate-level degrees and professional certificates, Furman Innovation Lab courses are built to inspire action, fuel ideas, and enhance the skills that set you apart. Here’s a glimpse of what you can find in our full catalog:
Through an interdisciplinary lens, students will examine foundational and emerging leadership theories, including trait, behavioral, situational, authentic, servant, strategic and sustainability leadership, while reflecting on personal leadership biographies and values. The course emphasizes deep engagement, critical thinking and collaborative learning through interactive discussions,…
Program Overview:
Module 1: Self-Awareness for Leaders
Module 2: Communication for Leaders
Organizations are investing in AI faster than they’re preparing their people to use it. Ignite AI was created to help close that gap.
Join nationally recognized futurist Mike Bechtel, stress physiologist Dr. Rebecca Heiss, and regional AI leaders for a one-day experience exploring what it takes to build AI-ready organizations. The morning combines keynote presentations and…
Foundations of Leadership empowers new leaders to
This immersive one-day course was created with new and aspiring leaders in mind. Participants will engage in practical exercises to enhance the research-backed…
Four Core Behaviors for Better Conversations
The four core principles may not be surprising at first glance, but the research has found that most individuals struggle in one or more of these areas alone. BCE is designed to…
Program Overview:
Module 1: Self-Awareness for Leaders
Module 2: Communication for Leaders
The Furman Innovation Lab brings together the best of Furman’s community-facing programs into a single, powerful hub. By uniting the Center for Innovative Leadership, the Furman Institutes, and Graduate Studies, we offer learners and organizations a seamless way to access bold, hands-on opportunities that drive growth, connection, and impact.
At Furman, learning doesn’t stop at graduation—it spills into communities, boardrooms, and real-world challenges. Through hands-on projects, leadership training, and impactful connections, our students and partners are transforming their careers and communities, making waves where it matters most. Here’s what they say:
Working with the Institute for the Advancement of Community Health (IACH) as part of my public-health capstone gave me real-world experience and helped launch a career path I love.
Hannah McKinnon ’20
Riley Institute Summer Experience (RISE) gave me a seat at the table—leadership training, real connections, and the tools to make things happen.
Riley Fellow ’24
Covering everything from data collection to real-world solutions, the Sustainability Leadership Initiative (SLI) helped me translate classroom theory into real change.
Anna DeMino ’26
Read MoreWorking with the Institute for the Advancement of Community Health (IACH) as part of my public-health capstone gave me real-world experience and helped launch a career path I love.
Hannah McKinnon ’20
Read MoreRiley Institute Summer Experience (RISE) gave me a seat at the table – leadership training, real connections, and the tools to make things happen.
Riley Fellow ’24
Read MoreCovering everything from data collection to real-world solutions, the Sustainability Leadership Initiative (SLI) helped me translate classroom theory into real change.
Anna DeMino ’26
Behind every Furman Innovation Lab experience are experts who bring research, real-world insight, and bold ideas to the table. They ignite curiosity, guide discovery, and help learners and organizations turn potential into lasting impact.
A mission-driven innovator, Garrett Stern leads Furman’s Center for Innovative Leadership with a passion for connecting universities and communities to solve real-world challenges.
With more than a decade of experience in higher education, he designs programs that strengthen leadership and build workforce resilience. A national speaker on the future of education and work, Garrett helps organizations navigate transformation with human-centered solutions.
Prior to coming to Furman, Bryan Boroughs served as chief operating officer and general counsel at the Institute for Child Success. He previously served as an investigative counsel for the United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, and for several youth-serving organizations, including Young Invincibles, Mountainview Whisman Elementary School District, the Girl Scouts of Santa Clara County, and Mental Health America of Greenville County.
Over the past 15 years, Bryan Davis has a track record of successfully launching and growing high-impact initiatives ranging from health-tech startups to universities and multi-billion-dollar healthcare centers.
Bryan has been responsible for the launch and growth of numerous initiatives within the institute, executed new external partnerships, and secured new funding. He founded a startup program nominated nationally for “Excellence in New Venture Creation” (GVL Starts) and helped lead South Carolina’s first-ever statewide student pitch competition (SC Innovates).
Andrew Predmore brings extensive expertise in sustainability to Furman, having worked in both private industry and higher education. He most recently served as sustainability manager for Milliken & Company, where his work focused on reporting environmental, social, and governance metrics, integrating life cycle assessment methodologies into Milliken’s business, and developing greenhouse gas reduction and climate mitigation strategy.
As a primary care physician with a 20+ year career in academic medicine, Kerry Sease brings a unique awareness to community health needs and solutions. Kerry has held multiple roles in the healthcare setting, including co-establishing the Bradshaw Institute for Community Child Health & Advocacy, leading the Pediatrics Residency Program, developing clinical programs to address gaps in care, and leading the Pediatric Community Health Needs Assessment for Prisma Health.
Zachary White has published research addressing topics such as authentic leadership, managing uncertainty, communicating stigmatized role experiences, digital equity, and caregiver communication.
He teaches courses in communication theory, innovation and creativity, and narrative communication.
Dr. White recently served on the North Carolina Institute of Medicine’s Task Force on Healthy Aging.
A mission-driven innovator, Garrett Stern leads Furman’s Center for Innovative Leadership with a passion for connecting universities and communities to solve real-world challenges.
With more than a decade of experience in higher education, he designs programs that strengthen leadership and build workforce resilience. A national speaker on the future of education and work, Garrett helps organizations navigate transformation with human-centered solutions.
Prior to coming to Furman, Bryan Boroughs served as chief operating officer and general counsel at the Institute for Child Success. He previously served as an investigative counsel for the United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, and for several youth-serving organizations, including Young Invincibles, Mountainview Whisman Elementary School District, the Girl Scouts of Santa Clara County, and Mental Health America of Greenville County.
Over the past 15 years, Bryan Davis has a track record of successfully launching and growing high-impact initiatives ranging from health-tech startups to universities and multi-billion-dollar healthcare centers.
Bryan has been responsible for the launch and growth of numerous initiatives within the institute, executed new external partnerships, and secured new funding. He founded a startup program nominated nationally for “Excellence in New Venture Creation” (GVL Starts) and helped lead South Carolina’s first-ever statewide student pitch competition (SC Innovates).
