The first Regional Freshman Leadership Conference for Iowa State freshmen will be held on Saturday in the Memorial Union.

The conference will focus upon tips for social, political and educational leadership, gender communication, dining etiquette and dressing for leadership. Freshman students will be divided into groups throughout the day for more interaction and hands-on learning.

Matt Ostanik, co-coordinator of the event and junior in architecture, said the conference will give freshmen an opportunity to gain leadership and will be “a great stepping stone to get involved in the university.”

Carole Harder, Olympic team building coach of the 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympic teams, will be the keynote speaker, and Iowa Lt. Gov. Joy Corning will speak about the role of leadership in politics.

Des Moines Mayor Preston Daniels and Terri Houston, assistant dean of students at ISU, also are scheduled to speak.

Committee member Ben Golding, sophomore in construction engineering, said more than 100 students are expected to attend Saturday’s conference.

He added that plans for a bigger conference are being made for the fall in hopes of getting more regional university participation.

“This conference will not develop leaders,” Golding said. “We want people to have the skills to become better leaders.”

The conference will be held Saturday from 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.