Application Deadline: April 15, 2026 (11:59 PM ET)
Decisions Released: April 22, 2026
Program Dates: June 14-19, 2026

The mission of the Cross & Anchor Leadership Summit (CALS) is to guide high school students on their journey to become leaders, and to provide them with resources to succeed in college.  

CALS selects 20 motivated high school students each year the opportunity to: 

• Develop a Community Impact Project (in teams of four) with the opportunity to pitch projects to a select panel of South Bend leaders and compete for prize money 
• Experience the college lifestyle (live in a college residence dorm for a week) 
• Receive mentorship from current Holy Cross College students 
• Acquire leadership skills taught by current community leaders 
• Explore community organizations related to business, education, science, and visual arts.
• Learn how accessible post-secondary education can be to help accomplish their goals.
• Become the leaders their community needs! 

An exciting part of this program is that offices within Holy Cross College will present a “How-to” College segment each day. We will be pulling in from our Office of Admissions to talk about college applications, the Office of Financial Aid and Student Accounts to discuss finances, and our Office of Student Success to talk about academics. By living on our beautiful campus dorms and receiving mentorship by current college students, students will be enrichened with a glimpse of the college experience. 

In 2026, the Cross & Anchor Summit will be offered June 14-19. 

Cross & Anchor Leadership Summit participants follow the same journey alongside college student mentors that enables them to investigate how virtuous leaders are formed and practice in a variety of disciplines including:

• Business
• Education
• Ecology
• Science
• Visual Arts

Throughout the week, you will explore the Summit’s fundamental question: How can I become a leader in my community?

“Being a Senior, I am looking around for a college. I really did enjoy the Holy Cross College campus and student life here. All the staff and students made me feel welcome and I really do see myself calling this place home.” ~2023 participant 

“I enjoyed everything! I loved the experience of learning more about college that I didn’t know about, making friends, and the activities we did.” ~2024 participant 

“I would consider Holy Cross for college. It’s very vibrant and community driven.” ~2024 participant 

A $100 registration fee will secure your seat for the full Cross & Anchor Leadership Summit week-long experience. This includes:

• Classroom materials
• Accommodations in a campus residence hall for five nights
• Meals
• Daily excursions in the South Bend community

Currently, the Summit is only open to students in the state of Indiana.

Cross & Anchor is grateful for all leaders and organizations that have contributed to making Cross & Anchor a fruitful leadership summit for dozens of high school students since 2023. 

We would like to thank our past seminar session speakers: 

• Iris Hammel, Cofounder and Executive Director of Regional Innovation and Startup Education (RISE) 
• Kati Macaluso, the Academic Director for the M.Ed of the Alliance for Catholic Education (ACE) 
• Mike Brown, the Founder and Executive Director of SOULSTIR LLC 
• Michael Jezewak, Assistant Director for Community Engagement at the Holy Cross Mission Center   
• Margaret Dosch, Assistant Curator of Education School Programs at Raclin Murphy Museum of Art 
• Nick Paliga, RISE Director of Entrepreneurship Education  
• Stephen Barany, the Faculty Fellow in Art and Design at Holy Cross College 
• André Polaniecki, Lecturer of the Humanities, Faculty Athletic Representative

If you have any questions, please contact The Cross & Anchor Leadership Summit, at [email protected] or call 574-474-8631. 

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