Robert E. Lee Ethical Leader

Robert E. Lee

When I mention General Lee many people will think of the 1960 orange Dodge Charger from the television show Dukes of Hazard? How many will think of the Confederate General that lead the Confederate Soldiers in the Civil War? In this paper I will talk about how General Robert E. Lee was a Visionary Leader and Ethical Leader for Education in the mid 1800's and how his vision for education still reflects what colleges and university use today and his ethical leadership and approach to help a diverse group of people get an education.

Visionary Leader

General Robert E. Lee's leadership in the Civil War still stirs debate today but it what he did as the President of Washington College that stands as constructive contribution to

the nation and his vision for education (Museum, 2008). General Lee was not only a very admired General for the Confederate Army but as the President of Washington College he had a vision for education and he shred that vision with his staff and saw to it that every man alive had a chance to go to college and get educated. Lee advocated strongly on his own guidance by encouraging current and former soldiers to seek new careers through education and to help restore the country as one. Thomas N. Barnes Center for Enlisted Education [ BCEE] (2014a) defines "Carrying" as a trait of Full Range Leadership Development, General Lee cared about his country and through his visionary leadership he said every man deserves a chance of getting the best education from the best educators the nation has to offer so during his presidency of Washington College the hand selected his staff and sent them across the world to get educated and bring that back to Washington College (III, 1999). Lee did not take the passive behavior role of "Laissez-Faire" and sit back at the top as President and watch, he went on a mission to make Washington College one of the best schools in the nation at that time (BCEE, 2014a, CF02).
Ethical Leader
General Robert E.

Lee was truly an ethical leader because after serving as a General for the Confederate Army Lee decided to make a change in his home state of Virginia and was select to lead a college. Through his ethical leadership and his critical thinking he promoted that we should all work together as one nation and make the country a better place than we found it. One of Dr. Toner's six test is the shame test, If your actions were publicized would you be embarrassed, discredited or humiliated?( BCEE, 2014b) General Lee taught a unique attribute that was based on primary principles of mutual trust among students, faculty and staff, the members of that college will not lie, cheat, steal or otherwise act dishonorable and embarrass the college (Museum, 2008). Lee says " I am opposed to the theory of doing wrong that good may come of it. I hold to the trust that you must act truthful whatever the consequences (III, 1999). Dr. Toner's principles of the Three R's (rules, results and realities) you can see they match up well Lee's honor code of ethics (BCEE, 2014b) . The three R's: rules, results and realities explain that rules give us ethical guidance, results are the outcomes or bottom line and the consequences of following or not following these rules and realities, which recognize the importance of the situation, circumstances or realities (BCEE,

2014b).
Personal Relevance
General Robert E. Lee's visionary and ethical leadership behaviors have made me look at my approach to the way I lead and build my shop back home. I have learned some of his visions and plan on introducing these into my office . As a Computer and Network Administrator I am put into a position of trust by the Commander and leadership just as General Lee was. Every time I log onto the network server or repair a computer for a customer my leadership expects great results and that I follow the rules and use my core values that I swore by. They trust in me that I will not go into private areas such as email and other personal files and only where I need to be to repair the system. My actions, decisions and behavior while repairing the system reflects my morals and my core values that I accepted while serving my customers. My vision is to continue to promote education as we can never stop learning in the cyber community and to always be well trained on new software and equipment so we can be the best Air Force in the world. My visions reflect greatly with General Lee because I am continuing my education while attend the Advanced Leadership Environment and just finished up with my second Bachelor's degree.
Conclusion
General Robert E. Lee used his visionary and ethical leadership abilities to help promote and positively influence education across our nation. His vision to give everyone a chance to get an education is something a lot of people see as an ethical leadership role that we still use today. General Lee's leadership is something that reflect on how many Americans live their lives today and have set family values based on what he did in the past. Dr. Toner's principles gives us a framework for thinking, acting and behaving ethically and as future leaders we should use as a leadership tool in developing future leaders.