Sophomore year has brought about a lot of development in my leadership experience. First, I am on the Leadership Council for the International Affairs Scholars program (a sort of executive board, if you will). As one of the 11 members on the council, I was responsible for driving the course of the program and creating the scholars experience of about 200 undergraduate students. In addition to being a member of the council, I was one of two co-chairs for the Global Citizenship team, which paired 2nd years to be mentors for the 1st years. My co-chair and I were in charge of matching about 80 2nd years with 60 1st years and then holding them accountable for the requirements we set forth for them.
In addition to being on the Leadership Council, I was also an OWL-Coordinator for move-in day at the beginning of autumn semester. After going through intensive leadership training for 2 days, I was given my own “flock” of OWLs (Ohio State Welcome Leaders). I was responsible for training them and, since 13 of my 15 OWLs were freshman, introducing them to the university. I was the first face that they saw for OSU and I made sure to make the most of that. For more details about this position, please see the post entitled “Artifacts: OWL-C.”
I recently found out that I have been selected to be a Resident Advisor for the 2016-2017 school year. I’m ecstatic to be taking on this new leadership role. I think that it will greatly add to my personal development and allow me to challenge myself by being a leader in a new setting that is very different from the positions I’ve held thus far. For more about the future of my RA position, please see the post entitled “Artifacts: Becoming a Resident Advisor.”
Because of all of these leadership experiences, I have learned a lot more about myself. I am a strong and charismatic leader, but also have the ability to encourage the ideas of others and make everyone safe and included. Not many people that I have come across handle this balance of being firm and friendly in quite the same way as me, since everyone has different leadership styles. I have the unique ability to be as caring as a mother and as authoritative as needed depending on the situation.