I am an alum of the Presidential Leadership Academy (Eta Class) and I attribute to the program my own firmitas. Although I hesitated applying to the Presidential Leadership Academy (PLA) due to a fear of not being enough of a leader and of not being aware enough of current events, throughout the course of the past three years (2015-2018) I have proven to myself that I do take the lead in confronting issues that have local, state-wide, nation-wide and world-wide implications.
Io sono una ex studentessa del Presidential Leadership Academy (Classe di Eta) e io attribuiscò il programma allo sviluppo del mio firmitas. Anche se ho avuto i dubbi prima di spedire i miei documenti al Presidential Leadership Academy (PLA) a causa della paura di non essere abbastanza un leader e di non essere abbastanza cosciente degli avvenimenti accadendo per tutto il mondo, durante questi ultimi tre anni (2015-2018) ho mostrato a me stessa che io sono un leader in confrontare i problemi ai livelli della città, dello stato, della nazione e del mondo.
Io sono una ex studentessa del Presidential Leadership Academy (Classe di Eta) e io attribuiscò il programma allo sviluppo del mio firmitas. Anche se ho avuto i dubbi prima di spedire i miei documenti al Presidential Leadership Academy (PLA) a causa della paura di non essere abbastanza un leader e di non essere abbastanza cosciente degli avvenimenti accadendo per tutto il mondo, durante questi ultimi tre anni (2015-2018) ho mostrato a me stessa che io sono un leader in confrontare i problemi ai livelli della città, dello stato, della nazione e del mondo.
Policy Papers |
As a sophomore, I composed a policy paper addressing the issue of bilingualism across the state of Pennsylvania. As a fluent speaker in English and in Italian the thought that students who are eager to learn but do not have the linguistic skills to do so is disheartening. Hence, the decision to take it upon ourselves – as a team of six members – to advocate for bilingual education at an elementary-school level. The aforementioned fairness-based policy paper inspired me to compose a second policy paper independently. Although not affiliated with the PLA, the National Urban Indian Family Coalition sought a team to compose an issue brief on housing and homelessness of urban Indians. As a team of one, I researched the issue, analyzed the quantitative information, summarized the qualitative information and composed an issue brief to express the aforementioned in a concise manner.
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Field Trips |
The motto of the program is “Making decisions in a gray world.” The process of composing both policy papers emphasized the notion that nothing is black or white – everything is a different shade of gray. One of the most important lessons that I learned in Dean Christian Brady and President Eric Barron’s seminars (HONOR 301 and 201, respectively) is the variety of leadership styles that exist. Ninety students of the sophomore, junior and senior class at the Pennsylvania State University (University Park) make up the Presidential Leadership Academy. Hence, each student brings his or her own interpretation of current events and the meaning behind leadership to the table. As previously mentioned, I had once not seen myself as a leader… Perhaps it was due to a close-minded interpretation of leadership. What opened my mind was the PLA field trips across the country. Every academic year, the program administration organized a weekend-long trip in the Fall and a weeklong trip in the Spring to an American city to gain a wider perspective on the types of leaders that exist. Each trip – no matter its length – granted me the opportunity to reflect on previously held notions regarding the nature of a city or of a so-called leader. The following is a chronological list of the cities I have visited (and either a blog post or photographs associated with each):
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Blogging |
Especially in order to reflect on previous field trip experiences, weekly blogging was extremely helpful. Although tedious at first, the blog posts provided me the perfect platform to question my own hard-held beliefs and answer to my softer, more curious self. In Spring 2018, I no longer viewed the PLA blog posts as tedious but rather as exciting opportunities to express my knowledge on certain subjects. The following is a list of the blog posts that I shared on the Presidential Leadership Academy’s webpage on Sites at Penn State this past semester:
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Essay
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In addition to blogging on a weekly basis, I took three credits of leadership courses this semester. The two-credit Honors Seminar (HONOR 401) offered a view on leadership from the perspective of Mount Rushmore. The Third President of the United States, Thomas Jefferson, starred as the leading role. In addition to the Dean and President’s seminars, the Honors Seminar served me well in adjusting my own point of view on leadership across centuries. As the final requirement of the course, I composed a five-page paper answering the question “Would Thomas Jefferson be an effective President in today’s world?”
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Survey
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As previously mentioned, I took three credits of leadership courses in Spring 2018. I received the remaining one credit through an evaluation of the first Honors Seminar offered in Fall 2017. Due to studying abroad in Rome, Italy last semester, I did not have the opportunity to immerse myself in the passing life of the First President of the United States, George Washington. (Rather, I had the opportunity to immerse myself in the eternal life of La città eterna and document it through the means of photography.) A survey sent out during Winter Break asked students questions regarding their opinion on George Washington and the associated required material, 1776 by David McCullough. A team of four (including myself) evaluated the survey results and proposed changes to future HONOR 401 curriculum in a PowerPoint Presentation. A number of recommendations to the PLA administration include providing students the required materials in advance; limiting the number of group presentations; dedicating more time to current events; and encouraging professor-student interactions. The “PLA FA17 Survey Results” was to be my final contribution to confronting local issues as a Presidential Leadership Academy student. Being in the Eta Class is near the top of my list of accolades on my resume. As I have grown in age and in confidence over the course of the past three years, my resume has grown with me in work experience, activities and awards.
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Albeit I am no longer a current student of the Presidential Leadership Academy, I shall always be a former student and a member of the Eta Class. My personal website is entitled with my Penn State student email address ([email protected]), which I will use until May 2020. There is a contact page on the website for those who would like to reach out to me in an informal manner. Irrespective of the means of contact, I am always available to speak about the PLA and about my strategy in overcoming my fear of being a leader and being more aware of current events.
Sebbene non sono ancora una studentessa del Presidential Leadership Academy, sarò sempre un membro della Classe di Eta. Il mio sito personale si intitola il mio indirizzo d'email academico che userò fino a maggio 2020. C'è una pagina di contatto sul sito per chi vorrebbe contattarmi in un modo informale. Indipendentemente dal modo di contattarmi, io sono sempre disponibile a parlare del PLA e della mia strategia nel superare la mia paura di essere un leader e di essere più cosciente degli avvenimenti di oggi.
Sebbene non sono ancora una studentessa del Presidential Leadership Academy, sarò sempre un membro della Classe di Eta. Il mio sito personale si intitola il mio indirizzo d'email academico che userò fino a maggio 2020. C'è una pagina di contatto sul sito per chi vorrebbe contattarmi in un modo informale. Indipendentemente dal modo di contattarmi, io sono sempre disponibile a parlare del PLA e della mia strategia nel superare la mia paura di essere un leader e di essere più cosciente degli avvenimenti di oggi.