Reflection
Upon entering this program and learning about the different pathways (leadership, research & creative activity, and community engagement), I believed that I would participate in research & creative activity the most. I am an English major with a concentration in creative writing, so this would be the obvious choice. However, as I end my time at Ohio University, I realize that I have spent a relatively equal amount of time on each pathway. One that I wasn't expecting to explore, let alone thrive in, is leadership. A certain level of leadership experience is necessary to be in the Ohio Honors Program, but I didn't have very many opportunities to spread my wings in this pathway when I was in high school. Despite this, it seems that the OHP recruiters saw some potential in me as an applicant and I am truly thankful that they did because this program opened up a world of opportunities that I had never considered at 18.
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In my first OHP class at OU, we received a brief introduction to all the pathways. One activity during our discussion on leadership has stuck with me all these years. We were asked to think of an important leader in our lives and to list the reasons we thought they were good leaders. I was shocked by the diversity of leadership roles and styles that my classmates shared, and I realized that maybe I had the potential to be a leader myself. I liked working behind the scenes, so I sought out positions like that around campus within my various communities. Student senate was my first leadership experience as a college student. I learned what it meant to be a representative of my constituents and used that mindset when voting on bills and having discussions with fellow senators.
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I also took the OHP Intro to Ethical Leadership class. I learned about leadership styles as defined by academics. In a creative or think-tank type of setting, I respond best to participative/democratic leadership. I definitely want my ideas heard, and brainstorming with others can create new ideas that one person may not have been able to come up with themselves. It also takes a lot of pressure off me to make final decisions (which can sometimes be a bit tricky for me) because the leader ultimately has that power. Working as a Learning Community Leader as well as a Writing Center Tutor required a relationship-oriented style. I wanted my students to succeed, but they are the ones that ultimately had to make that happen. I was there to boost their morale and understanding rather than to tell them what to do.
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I chose to pursue an experience in Sigma Tau Delta because I am an English Major (and super nerdy about it) and I wanted to meet peers who share the same love for English as I do. I gained valuable relationships, insights from respected members of the English department, and experienced English-related activities on campus. While this experience was simply community engagement at first, I was eventually elected as treasurer, then president the next year. I've heard that sometimes the best leaders aren't necessarily those who seek out such positions. In my case, I didn't dream of being a treasurer. I agreed to the position because there was a need (English majors tend to avoid anything that relates to math like the plague).
As treasurer, I got to be a leader behind the scenes, which I was comfortable with. I collected membership dues and worked out how to pay those dues to the national organization, which involved administrative acrobatics that are too complicated (and boring) to write about. I also made sure that our various accounts were in order and kept track of who was interested in attending our international organization's annual conference online and ordered official graduation chords for our seniors. Because figuring out how to do all of this was very difficult, the president and I created a google drive for our chapter's documents and notes so that transferring power can become easier for future exec members. This ended up being a smart move because once I was elected president, I referred to the google drive often.
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As president, the leadership responsibilities became more upfront and center stage. Luckily, I had great friends to back me up on the exec board. Two of us were in OHP, one was in HTC, and one was a Culter scholar. We brought our organization numbers up exponentially after the decrease COVID-19 brought to our organization, and we kept each other accountable as we navigated planning events, working rush, and involving ourselves in the English community at OU and in Athens. I enjoyed how collaborative this team was, although I had the most say decision-making-wise and had to delegate tasks to the others.
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Obviously, I participated in research & creative activity a lot as well, as evidenced by the publications and projects I have participated in over the years. And while I didn't implement new ideas or structures in my communities outright, I definitely engaged with them and hopefully made an impact. The Ohio Honors Program has broadened my horizons in each pathway and I'm so thankful for the resources they provided me over these past four years. Although I was part of the pilot cohort and the program was still growing and needed to smooth out some kinks, I was able to participate in opportunities that I never would have known about or thought I was qualified for if not for this program. I am especially grateful for the diversity of accepted fields of study because I loved learning about what other people in OHP were interested in/doing via discussion forums. I didn't feel pigeon-holed into my major and got to experience more than just literature (as fun as this community is). I got to discuss ethics with engineers and leadership ideals with musical theater majors. OHP was truly enriching and I can't wait to see how this organization grows in the future.