Julia Rainey
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West jordan, Ut
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Communications
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leadership
Effective leadership in event management
Effective leadership in event management involved planning and executing a large recruitment event at Southern Utah University called a Red Riot. Each Red Riot includes a campus tour, meals, and an overnight stay with the Presidential Ambassadors. The purpose of these events are to get prospective students on campus and show them what it is like to be a T-Bird. As a member of the Executive Council of the Presidential Ambassador team I had the opportunity to oversee a large portion of the event which allowed me to exercise many aspects of leadership.
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This project focused on leadership in a large way because it was necessary to make committees, delegate tasks, learn effective communication, and execute a successful event. It is possible for students to implement the same leadership principles or to do a similar project in a different organization like a church or service group.
Presidential Ambassador team 2017-2018
The inspiration for this project came from participating in over 30 recruitment events but never having the opportunity to have a leadership role. I knew what an impact these recruitment events can have on students and i wanted to create one that would be memorable and allow students to see SUU in the same way that I do. When I give tours, I like to point out the part of campus that I feel like truly made me realize that SUU was where I should attend school and through Red Riots, we as recruiters are able to bring so many students to campus. I felt almost a sense of obligation to do something that would give back to SUU because of everything it has given to me. I knew that a Red Riot would be the most efficient way to do that.
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Some of the challenges that came from this project involved working with others. There were some instances where communication was not clear and people did not understand what was going on. I think if I were to do the project again, i would try harder to make sure everyone on the ambassador team had a clear understanding of what was going on prior to the event. Another challenge I faced involved committee members being patient and problem solving when things didn't go quite as planned. For instance, we had escape rooms with the ROTC and they were taking longer than expected so the ambassador running them was getting flustered and I had to calm him down and problem solve.
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This project in my opinion benefited all of the students that attended because it allowed some insight into their lives about what college is like as well as hopefully gave them a more clear idea of whether or not SUU is somewhere they would like to attend. I think it also benefited all of the ambassadors involved because they are able to learn from the mistakes, complications, or successes that occurred during and as a result of the Red Riot.
This project benefited me in many ways. I grew so much as an individual as a result of this project and it is something that I can put on a resume and be proud of accomplishing. It allowed me to realize some of the things that are important to me as a leader like how sometimes it is better to trust people and delegate rather than just doing it yourself. Also that you don't always get to choose who you work with but you can choose to make it work with those you have available. I get to walk away with a sense of accomplishment that I have contributed to influencing the lives of students who choose to come to SUU and that brings me great joy.
This Red Riot was not easy and there were some unexpected challenges however it proved that I can accomplish great tasks and be a leader.
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My mom once told me about a kid who saw saw a bunch of star fish washed up on a shore and he started throwing them in the ocean. A man approached him and said "why are you bothering with throwing them back in the ocean? They are just star fish and it doesn't matter." The boy replied while throwing a star fish and said, "It matters to this one." As I think about that story, I know that not every kid who came to the Red Riot will come to SUU just like not every star fish was saved but the simple attempt at making a difference in someones life was satisfaction enough for me to walk away from SUU this spring with some self fulfillment knowing I may have made a difference in someones life.