Gina Owenby
Values-based leadership was the focus of the latest session of the Leadership Lunch Series hosted by The CCBC Office of Student Engagement. The recurring series is designed to help students strengthen and develop their skills by participating in lessons that discuss different leadership topics each session.
Participants are encouraged to attend the current series which is held on various Mondays, virtually at 12:30pm, throughout the spring semester. You can brush up on former lessons on their YouTube channel, and be sure to stay connected to see when future events will be held.
The topics that will be covered this semester are time management, values-based leadership, leadership and Dr. Seuss, resume building 101, stress management, and dealing with change. Past semesters covered topics such as avoiding perfectionism, diversity and inclusion, resume tips, and self-care to name a few.
Leadership lunch events are widely held across the country and hosted by an array of colleges and businesses. They are a great resource for everyone whether in a leadership role or developing skills for everyday life, as the lessons cover a variety of topics that can be applied in many situations.
There are countless articles on the benefits of student leadership. The article, 10 Reasons to Choose a College with Strong Student Leadership Opportunities, by Davis & Elkins College summarized the importance of it by stating, “academic study might be your vehicle, but leadership experience is the fuel. Leadership requires the development of new skill sets that are especially important to potential employers, like confidence, communication, empathy, self-awareness, goal focus, humility, realistic optimism, inclusivity, dedication, and self-control.”
Values-based leadership was one of the most recent topics of the CCBC Leadership Lunch Series. The lesson was filled with many great takeaways that could be applied instantaneously. “When it comes to leadership, your values aren’t the only ones that are going to matter,” said Chrissy Hoffman, Assistant Director of Student Engagement at CCBC. “Your values are not better than someone’s or worse than someone else’s, because they’re yours and they make you who you are.”
“I am new to the student government association, as well as the leadership role. I became the vice president of my class last semester, so everything is rather new to me. The leadership lunch series was amazing and very informative," said Marshawnae Stokes, Vice President of CCBC Dundalk RN class May ’24. “It gave me insight on the different ways that I can lead not just in the Student Nurse Association but also in everyday life. The lunch series has taught me how to be a fair, and efficient leader to my fellow students. By attending the meetings, I hope to incorporate value-based leadership into my role as Vice President, through the use of compassion, honesty, patience, and advocacy.”
When discussing core values, students were asked to consider leaders in their lives. “Think about a leader that you admire, it could be someone nationally known, internationally known, it could be someone personal in your own life that no one else would know,” Hoffman said. “Then think about what you admire about that person. Once you think about that, I want you to see if you could figure out what their core values are based upon what you admire about them.”
The presentation went in-depth about core values, the efficacy of values-based leadership, strengths and failures in leaders, how to embed core values in to your practices, and how to sort your values based on importance to you. In closing, a quote as stated on a slide from the presentation that was read aloud by the instructor, is one that should resonate with all: “surround yourself with people who see your value and remind you of it.”
Be sure to follow CCBC Student Engagement on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube to check out past leadership topics and to keep up to date on current and upcoming events. Attend this semester’s Leadership Lunch Series using the link https://ccbcmd.zoom.us/j/88618957363.
