The Leadership and Engagement Ambassadors hosted their inaugural president’s summit for presidents and vice presidents of registered student organizations on March 30 in the Student Union Ballroom.
There was a Taylor Grocery brunch, summit sessions and a keynote speaker. The summit sessions included visionary leadership challenges and situational questions.
The keynote speaker, Martin Fisher, director of campus visit and orientation programs, spoke on how leadership was a balance between love.
Cate Drane, leadership development coordinator and junior public policy leadership and public health double major from Natchez, Miss., expressed her desire to develop leadership skills and provide networking opportunities.
“We are doing it to build leadership within our organizations (that are) starting out or have already been established,” Drane said. “And (it is for) networking opportunities between organizations because they need to meet more people and get more people socially involved in their organizations.”
Adam Maatallah, a sophomore public policy leadership and international studies double major from Madison, Miss., echoed Drane’s sentiment.
“We want to create more collaboration on campus, get them to branch out to other organizations, table partnerships and build a better student community overall,” Maatallah said.
The Leadership and Engagement Ambassadors expressed their overall desire to get registered student organizations to collaborate with each other and make friends.
“I hope the presidents meet and find something in common and somehow collaborate,” Drane said. “I hope people make friends. I hope they take something home that they can build upon their leadership within their organization but tell their members how to build their own leadership inside and outside.”
The event also served as a learning experience for RSO executives and members.
“The summit serves as a great opportunity between the executive members (and) the members of the organization itself,” Lilly Drane, a senior communications sciences and disorders major from Natchez, Miss., said “It allows for them to grow and learn from one another because each are going to make mistakes and learn from those, and they can teach other organizations.”
