Torrie Rice
Moab, UT
Elementary Education
Leadership Track
Vice President of Campus Tours
As a member of the leadership engagement track, I felt holding a leadership position would be a perfect experience as an EDGE project. Going into my fourth year of being a Presidential Ambassador at SUU, I decided to run for office on the Executive Council. The Executive council meets weekly and makes decision on how the organization can be most effective. With many positions available to run for, I chose to run for Vice President of campus tours. This was the position that I felt I would excel most in.
The main goal of a Presidential Ambassador is to recruit for the school. Recruitment involves driving to high schools and helping students apply, hosting weekend events where high schoolers can come enjoy fun things on campus, and most importantly, campus tours. As Vice President of Campus Tours and for my EDGE project I was in charge of training all of our tour guides for the upcoming school year. Training included presentations, practice tours, and even testing. This is where most of the leadership came in to play.
The inspiration came for my project when I first came to SUU as a freshman. As a Presidential Ambassador, I looked up to the Executive Council in all that they did. I felt that I wanted it to be my goal to finish off in this leadership position. The reason I went with leadership for my EDGE project is because I strongly believe that a good leader can influence positive change. I wanted the practice and experience with leadership and I wanted to EDGE program to assist me in becoming a better leader.
This road wasn't a smooth downhill slope. There were times when I faced real challenges. It was a lot of work to keep everything organized throughout the year. I kept finding myself stressed out or behind in scheduling campus tours. Other challenges I faced were students who needed different leadership styles. In this position, I was over 55 other people. This means there were a lot of different personalities and a lot of different needs. I was constantly working to better connect with each individual that was unique to them and what they needed.
As mentioned briefly above, this position gave me many opportunities to influence positive change. Because of such successful training, our recruitment and admission rate increased so the school benefited. Also, after getting to know so many people, I was able to connect with them and help them grow as individuals. It was very important for me to lead by example so I feel the the Presidential Ambassador program also benefitted and got better throughout the year.
Yet, I feel as though I benefitted the most. I was able to learn and grow so much from this project. I have learned how to be more organized so I can prioritize my tasks and get them done. I've learned more strategies on teaching and assessing which will greatly impact my future as a teacher. I also gained 55 incredible friends. But overall, I gained a great sense of confidence and pride that I look back on in times of self doubt or stress.
Looking back on my experience, I wouldn't change a thing. I mentioned in my journal, "I learned so much about tours today and I wasn't in the lead." One of the biggest lessons I took away from this experience was allowing myself to step back and learn from others just as much or more than taking the reigns and telling everyone else what to do.
