I would first like to thank all the individuals that contributed to the development of the PLA and its students – Ed and Helen Hintz, President Erickson, President Barron, Melissa Doberstein, Dean Brady, Lisa Breon, Whitney Hinze, Madeline Rossman. This thank you is not limited to the individuals above as the PLA program has hosted and been hosted by many powerful thinkers and speakers over the course of the four years I have been around.
Though some might think that the PLA’s promotion of critical thinking and ‘exploring the grey’ in discussions is simply not vital as compared to more technical academic groups researching solutions for societal issues, however I find my experience to have been the most fruitful decision in my college career. It is a rare occurrence to find a group of students as motivated, confident, steeped-with-quirks, and resilient as the group we have in the Presidential Leadership Academy. Mia Mckenzie, the creator of Black Girl Dangerous, speaks of how volatile she is perceived by society because she has been given the tools of knowledge and a free mind. There is something quite enticing about the thought that someone is ‘dangerous’ because they have acquired knowledge that makes their current social sitting uncomfortable to be in..to have a knowledge so strong that others might feel threatened by it and react negatively – that is true power. PLA has promoted an environment of accessibility, improvisation, and customizability that develops students into free thinkers not tied down by tradition.
To be very honest, the PLA has made my life more difficult in that way – I have so much realized potential, but I can sense that my character change will rock the relationships in my life. I feel that this is a topic less frequently talked about on a societal level. For instance, Nelson Mandela was a great revolutionary-political figure that combated apartheid, however not many people know that Mandela was a pretty absent family member. The balance of personal and public lives has become quite apparent to me in my journey throughout college. As daughter of immigrant parents, I often feel the pull between my career pursuits and convention as I commit deeper into academia.
The reason I bring up this particular aspect is that I find that this will be the next step in my life – trying to mitigate the gray areas of between both worlds my personal and public worlds. Do I separate both or do I find ways to merge the two? I am certain I am not the only college student with this particular issue as I set out into the ‘real world’. However, I am finding that with each day my decisions and actions have deeper resonance and create precedent for my character. Integrity and authenticity are the values I will carry with me coming out of the academy and onto my future journeys. I would like to again thank the supporters of the PLA program for taking a group of 30 students seriously on their many idealistic dreams. We are changing the world thanks to you.
Follow Us!