2: Finding My Voice in the Circle

Leadership. For a long time, I thought it was about accolades, titles, and who stood at the top. Growing up, that’s what I saw — leaders with power, advantage, and influence. I thought leadership was about being the loudest voice in the room.

Then I arrived at Bowling Green State University as part of the Sidney A. Ribeau President’s Leadership Academy (PLA), and everything I thought I knew flipped.

In the PLA, I learned that authentic leadership isn’t about power, but service. We called it servant leadership: the idea that a leader is servant first, grounded not in ego but in the desire to lift others. Robert Greenleaf wrote, “The servant-leader is servant first… it begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first.” That philosophy became the foundation for everything that followed.

The program wasn’t just theory. It was action. Service hours every semester. Projects tied to real organizations. The responsibility of holding executive positions and learning how to lead not with a vote count, but with consensus—sitting in a circle—hearing every voice, even the quiet ones, until we could move forward together. Those exercises taught me how much damage it can do when someone feels unheard, and how much power there is when everyone feels included.

Being in the 2022 PLA cohort also showed me what it meant to be surrounded by talent, drive, and vision. We sharpened each other. We challenged each other. And slowly, I started to find my own voice among them.

That growth didn’t just stay in the PLA bubble. I stepped into other leadership roles: serving as Vice President of the School of Media and Communication Student Association, becoming a Student Ambassador of the BGSU Schmidthorst College of Business, and finding myself — the only Communication major — representing a space that didn’t always feel like it had room for me. Those moments gave me confidence that what I wanted could happen if I put action behind it.

One of the most impactful experiences came through was  the Bowling Green City Schools Mentor Program. I was paired with a 10th grader who didn’t know why he was there — and honestly, at first, neither did I. The early meetings were awkward, filled with silence and doubt. But I kept showing up. Slowly, he opened up. I listened. He taught me patience, consistency, and the power of being there for someone even when they don’t know how to ask for it. That mentorship taught me that leadership is just as much about listening as it is about speaking.

At the same time, my ambition was branching out. I started auditing a real estate course — showing up every Monday from 6 to 9 p.m., not for credits or a grade, but because I wanted to learn. Even without recognition, that hunger reflected what PLA was instilling in me: leadership is choosing to show up, whether or not anyone else is keeping score.

Looking back, Bowling Green was a season of formation. It took the boy who came out of high school with doubt and turned him into a young man who believed in vision, service, and possibility. It taught me that failure — like the business I’d tried and lost in high school — wasn’t an end, but a beginning.

And that mindset carried me into one of the most defining moments of my journey: standing on a stage with the TEDx logo behind me, sharing my story with the world. But standing on that stage wouldn’t come easy. Before I ever hit the red circle, I had to battle doubt, grief, and the voice in my head telling me I didn’t belong there.

COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS

“When you were in the PLA, you carried yourself with thoughtfulness and curiosity. You asked questions, explored ideas, and wanted to understand leadership in your own way. Over time, you became more confident and sought out opportunities to grow, both in and outside the classroom.

The diversity within the PLA community gave you a chance to see many different styles of leadership and perspectives. You were part of a cohort that valued reflection, dialogue, and community learning, and those experiences helped you develop a clearer sense of who you are and how you want to lead.”

— Dr. Jacob Clemons, Director, Sidney A. Ribeau President’s Leadership Academy (PLA), Bowling Green State University

“You always provided such insight and perspective to the community. Whether you were engaging one-on-one in a discussion or contributing at a larger meeting, I could trust that you would be thinking critically about the subject at hand and prompt your peers to think more deeply about their own leadership journeys.

I believe the PLA highlighted your unique perspective and growth mindset. The collaborative nature of the PLA encouraged you to communicate in new and effective ways, bringing your cohort and peers alongside you in your pursuit to become the best leader you could be.”

— Kendra Lutes, Associate Director, Student Leadership & Civic Engagement, Bowling Green State University