The Importance Of Strengths To Promote Diversity

1._____ Share a personal challenge that you set for yourself. Why was the challenge important and what was your success at meeting the challenge? A personal challenge I had in my early professional years was speaking in front of large audiences. I would get nervous and began to tremble. It was different than speaking in front of my peers or family. You get one chance to make a first impression. It was important to me to overcome this fear so I committed myself to completing tasks outside of my comfort zone that would push me to practice. Being vulnerable and sharing my fears gave me strength and insurmountable courage. My motivation was internal and I often thought, “60 seconds of insane courage can change my life and the lives of others if I dare to speak confidently.” Speaking in front of crowds now is natural for me.

2._____ What strengths do you have that would be helpful in a leadership capacity? Self-awareness, integrity and positivity are three strengths I possess that would be helpful in a leadership capacity. My ability to be self-aware has allowed me to leverage relationships to gain buy-in from children, teachers and families to reach meaningful school goals. I live by the quote, “Leadership is doing what is right when no one is watching (George Van

My role in promoting diversity is to represent the face and voice of youth in urban as well as rural communities. This role is an opportunity to give hope to those I serve to learn and grow. My goal is to do whatever it takes to ensure all children no matter what their race, socio-economic status or culture, receive a quality education. In some instances, my role in promoting diversity is canceling stereotypes people may have of women, minorities and/or young professionals. It is my goal to challenge the mindsets of educators and coach them through becoming aware of their biases to serve students