Janice DeCosmo, associate dean in Undergraduate Academic Affairs, was recently elected chair of the division of Undergraduate Research Program directors for the national organization Council on Undergraduate Research. Janice has served as a councilor of that division for several years; being elected chair of that division also includes being a member of the executive board for the Council on Undergraduate Research. It is a two-year term.
The Council on Undergraduate Research is a membership organization representing more than 900 colleges and universities, and is the professional organization for faculty and administrators who work on undergraduate research initiatives. The Council helps colleges and universities support faculty involvement in undergraduate research and draws attention to undergraduate research on a national level. They support an undergraduate research poster session on Capitol Hill and meetings with legislators, serve as an informed body to provide feedback and insight on National Science Foundation work involving undergraduate researchers. As a member of the executive board, Janice will be involved in policy, planning, decision-making, structuring the annual meeting, etc.
“The thing I find compelling about CUR is there are so many institutions that are members,” says Janice. “The meetings are full of rich ideas about implementation and big ideas about new directions. It’s a very open and collegial organization.”
At this year’s Honors Colloquium, presentations included students鈥� research, leadership, travel and service learning experiences. This new premise was designed to align with the alterations to the Honors curriculum, which incorporates each of these four elements (research, service, leadership and travel) into the new set of Honors requirements.
Katie McCorkell is an undergraduate Honors student majoring in psychology at the 乱伦社区. She received a Mary Gates Leadership Scholarship for her involvement with Active Minds, a student organization that works to change the conversation about mental health.
In my first moment of leadership, I wasn鈥檛 trying to be a leader. I didn鈥檛 know if anyone would really get what I was saying, but I said it anyway. 鈥淢y brother has paranoid schizophrenia.鈥� It was part of a poem I performed at a poetry slam in Seattle, a poem that upon finishing, left me in tears. That night I discovered that there was someone who needed to hear what I was saying. That someone was me.
This is the foundation of all leadership work I do. I believe that leadership is about opening yourself to connection, and if you鈥檝e been closed off for a while, you鈥檒l find the first person you need to connect with is yourself. When I stood up for my beliefs in front of other people, I was most amazed by the things I learned about myself. Previously I wanted to speak out about mental illness, but I had never seen anyone else do it before. Not at school, not at poetry events, not in church. I didn鈥檛 know the impact speaking out could have until I did it. When I spoke openly about my brother鈥檚 struggle with a mental illness, I figured out what his struggle meant to me. I admitted it was a part of me, even though I wanted to ignore it. When I really connected with the experience, and discovered the grief and pain and hope that I held, I gave others the courage to make their own connections.
Last fall I helped start a poetry community at the 乱伦社区. When we planned our first open-mic, we weren鈥檛 sure many people would come. I said, 鈥淓ven if it is just the five of us, I want to get together and share poems with you.鈥� I wanted to speak out and I needed to be heard. It turns out, so did a lot of other students. Our first open-mic was packed, and I was amazed at the number of people who gave poetry, applause, or simply their presence. Each open-mic, I learned a new name and encouraged a new poet to the stage. It was a joy to watch other people perform for the first time, because I got to see them discover the same thing I discovered: that other people find their stories important. I saw them hear themselves in a way that they never imagined possible.
Once I invited someone to go with me to the youth slam where I first got my start. I called her directly, and I said, 鈥淗ey, Want to go with me? Oh, and you鈥檙e eligible to compete. You should give it a try.鈥� She wasn鈥檛 sure. 鈥淏ut they鈥檙e so good鈥ut what if I suck?鈥� 鈥淪o what,鈥� I said, 鈥淲e鈥檙e going together, why not compete? Meet me at the bus stop at 6:15.鈥�
My friend won the slam that night, but I got the biggest prize of all. Bringing her to the slam was far different than simply performing myself. She had a new found confidence in the importance of her voice, and she got much more involved in the Seattle poetry scene. She is a leading officer in our club this year, committed to giving other people the same opportunity I gave her. Recently, she thanked me for taking her to the slam, 鈥淚 never would鈥檝e performed if you hadn鈥檛 told me to.鈥�
This goes to show that leadership can sustain and grow itself. It can be energizing, not exhausting. The first step is simply saying, 鈥淚 think you鈥檙e the right person for the job,鈥� and the next step is following through to communicate the job鈥檚 skills and responsibilities. When these steps grow from genuine connections, the process is smooth. That鈥檚 why I believe that leadership is about opening myself to connection. Because leaders stand up for their beliefs in a way that connects and good leaders inspire others to join them. Great leaders give others the tools to take their own stand.
This essay is part of an occasional series inspired by the 鈥淭his I Believe鈥� series on the Bob Edwards Show. For more information on it, visit聽.
UW students are participating in public service in record numbers, giving back to the community and connecting their academics to their leadership and service work. Learn some details about this work through a series of visuals.
Mary Gates Leadership Scholar Katie McCorkell wasn鈥檛 trying to become a leader when she started to read her poetry out loud. But by reading her work to others and helping establish a poetry group on campus, she gained personal insight that led to deeper connections with her peers and leadership opportunities. These experiences helped her form her ideas about what leadership means to her.
This year is one full of wonderful milestones. At the 乱伦社区, we are celebrating the institution鈥檚 150 years of service, research, and teaching. And here in Undergraduate Academic Affairs, we are celebrating several milestones as well.
On May 11 from 4-6 p.m. UW undergraduates will showcase civic engagement projects that enrich their undergraduate education and benefit the local nonprofit organizations, schools, and campus programs with which they serve. Don’t miss the annual Spring Celebration of Service and Leadership!
Honors alumna and current Access student Penelope Ellis has taken an interesting educational path across disciplines. In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the University Honors Program, current Honors student Crystal Zhu spoke with Penelope about her educational experiences in the early days of the Honors Program and how they compare with her classroom experiences today.
乱伦社区 student participation in service-learning is breaking records. Learn about this community-based learning opportunity through February’s episode of UW 360 which contained a special spotlight on the Carlson Leadership and Public Service Center, “Stories on service learning integrated with academics.”
Rizani帽o 鈥淩iz鈥� Reyes (鈥�06) and Mary Gates Scholar alum has made a name for himself in the gardening and horticulture scene. Riz shares his enthusiasm for plants and suggests some plants to grow in small spaces.
