DC Summer Institute On Leadership & Community Engagement Comes To An End
This will be my final post about the DC Summer Institute on Leadership & Community Engagement. It’s been an invaluable summer in Washington DC. Even though I made no money this summer, the relationships I forged, the people I’ve helped through my work, and the internship experience at DC Central Kitchen are worth far more than anything I would have gained at any other internship. This was the perfect fit for me.
I love the amazing people in the Culinary Job Training Program of DC Central Kitchen with whom I have become friends. They are some of the most compassionate, committed, and savvy people I will ever meet in my lifetime. When you come from a troubled background like mine, where your mom gets busted for dealing/using drugs, you grow up in bad foster homes, where your savior adoptive family turns out to be child abusers, you fail to successfully commit suicide at age 16 to escape the abuse but nobody notices, where you never had a best friend growing up, where the majority of your 20s are wasted while battling untreated/undiagnosed bipolar disorder, you spend nearly three years homeless, where you get arrested and imprisoned for being homeless, you squander life-changing opportunities, and where you find out who your father is while Googling yourself – when you come from that kind of background (and I don’t write that to elicit your pity), you never really fit in with anyone.
Who could possibly relate to or understand you? Where and with whom do you fit in? Well, for the first time in my life, I actually feel like I fit in somewhere at DC Central Kitchen’s Culinary Job Training Program. It wasn’t instantaneous, but as I learned about the background stories of the CJT staff and became familiar with the culinary students during the interview process, my investment in the staff, program, and students grew. I put aside my introversion to build friendships with my co-workers. I became unusually at ease with my new friends – a word I never use lightly. I was drawn into the work I was doing because it was valued and praised by everyone. I was eager to see the staff and students each day. My heart told me that I belonged there, that these people could relate to me. It felt like something I never really had growing up – a family. It’s been an honor working with the CJT team, and I hope to continue the friendships I’ve built there for years to come, even if I do not work there after graduation next May.
I also met a great group of W&M students from the Leadership Institute that I know will grow to be good leaders in our communities and nation. Thanks to some insider information, I know that they were all thinking what the hell is this old dude doing in the class? (I AM NOT THAT OLD!!). As a non-traditional student, when I sit in a classroom and look around, three things always go through my mind: 1) Damn, I’m getting old and fat; 2) These kids are so immature and naïve; and 3) If I hear the word “like” one more gosh darn time, I’m going to go insane. I am pleased to say that only #1 went through my mind as I learned and experienced the summer with these students. 🙂 We learned a lot in our intense schedule of site visits and our regular discussions, blog posts, and reflections on leadership. Leadership is something easily botched (just turn on the news) and hard to master, but thanks to Professor Drew Stelljes I feel that I am more capable of being a good leader after this summer course.
To those who have not taken a DCSI course, I highly recommend it. Even as a rising senior and “old” student, I am certain that this experience is more valuable than anything else I could have done this summer. For my fellow LCE classmates that read this, I have three questions for you now that our time is coming to an end:
- Having gained this new perspective on what it means to be a leader, what is your philosophy of leadership?
- What have you learned about yourself this summer?
- What has been your favorite moment this summer? Worst moment?
I salute my fellow LCE’ers and my brothers and sisters at DCCK CJT!! Thank you for the wonderful summer.
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Daniel, I do not even know how to respond to this. Your blog post is so well written and interesting. I really admire your honesty and candor. It was an indescribable honor to be a student with you on this summer journey. I am so thankful for everything you have to say because you have some wonderful insight that I think everyone can value. I am so glad you found a family at your internship; finding a work place like that is something rare. I cannot wait to see what you decide to do after graduation.
I will choose one of the questions you asked because I believe I touched on all of them in my blog post, but with question number two I will go in more detail. I think the most important thing that I learned this summer was that I cannot control everything. I do not need a life plan because life is forever winding. I also need to stop whining so much. This sounds silly, but I think I am going to work on being more positive. Thanks so much for your post! I will see you tonight 🙂
Thanks Sarah! I appreciate your kindness and am blushing at all the wonderful words you and other students have used to describe me. DCCK was just a great fit given their background, my background, and the work I ended up doing. It was harmonious, and you are right that most of the time life is forever winding. For us Type A people, we have to learn to roll with the unexpected while striving to find and achieve what we want out of the journey. You never struck me as a negative person or complainer when we’ve talked. You worry, but that is natural. Be confident in who you are and all that you do – your confidence and positivity will grow as you practice them. Don’t be a stranger when we get back to Williamsburg. That goes for all y’all!
Daniel–
This was a wonderful gift to read. Thank you so much for being so insightful, honest, and willing to open yourself up to new experiences this summer. You were a pleasure to work with, and it’s feedback like this and experiences like this that make me so passionate about working with students. There’s no doubt that you will go on to do great things and to be a great leader. What I appreciate about you most of all is that you have helped me see the world differently and have helped me become a better administrator and advisor. I am so glad you were in our program this summer! Please keep in touch!
Hey Sarah! I didn’t acknowledge all the work you and the rest of the admin staff did for DCSI. That deserves and equal level of gratitude and appreciation as well. I wouldn’t have been able to experience everything else without you. Don’t ever lose your energy and enthusiasm. It made some of those initial meetings much more interesting than they would be without you.
I appreciate your kind words and confidence. I am pleased to hear that I helped you see the world differently and become a better administrator and advisor, considering I didn’t do anything directly to influence that haha. It’s often the small, informal moments that cause the greatest changes in us. I wish you, Steven, Roxanne, Adam, Lauren, and the rest of the crew the best as you continue growing W&M’s DC Office and presence.
Hey Daniel! It has been so inspiring to read your blog posts during the course of the DCSI program. You have a really great perspective on life in general and the things that are truly important. I am still trying to process everything that I have learned over the past few months, so I don’t have my leadership philosophy super sorted out yet. When I was writing my core principles paper though, something really struck me. One of my principles was that every situation is not conducive to success, but every success can come from any situation. This will probably end up being one of the backbones of my philosophy, as I believe that any good leader must understand this. A leader should know how to lead people (imagine that) out of any circumstances, whether they are good or bad.
I look forward to seeing you around campus this coming year! I promise I’ll try not to say “like.”
Hey Amanda,
Lol @ the “like.” In dialogue that goes something like this: “I was like [insert word/phrase], and he/she/it was like [insert word/phrase], and then I was like….” is particularly annoying, and honestly makes the speaker seem incompetent. Don’t ever talk like that in a business/professional setting! You will get the stink eye from the older people really quick. Getting off my like podium…
Thank you for reading my words this summer, and I’m honored that you describe them as inspiring! I like your principle that every success can come from any situation. We as individuals determine what success is, and there is something positive that can come out of any situation. I’m genuinely glad to hear that your internship went well this summer, and I wish you the best in your future.
First, to quickly answer your questions:
Having gained this new perspective on what it means to be a leader, what is your philosophy of leadership?
-For me, being a leader is using clear communication, listening, finding passion in what you do, exuding a humble confidence, and putting others before yourself. It takes a lot of characteristics to compose a truly dynamic and effective leader; therefore, a leader must be flexible and evolve with time and their environment.
What have you learned about yourself this summer?
I have learned to live in the moment.
What has been your favorite moment this summer? Worst moment?
My least favorite moment was hand delivering letters to every Congressional Office in Rayburn Office Building (it is by far the hardest Congressional Office Building to navigate around). For my favorite moment, it is too hard to choose just one… I am going to take the easy way out and pick our two week seminar as a whole.
Daniel, it has been an honor reading your blog this summer and gaining insight into your journey. It is extremely motivating to hear about your success this summer. You inspire us all. I’m very grateful that you were a member of LCE 2014 and I look forward to seeing you around campus in a few short weeks!