E le sua se lolo, i se popo e tasi. It takes more than one coconut to make a substantial amount of coconut oil. - Samoan Proverb
Talofa lava,
It is with immense pleasure to welcome you all to my portfolio website. I invite you to look around and read about my education journey. My journey has been filled with deep reflection and implementation into my professional practice as a student affairs professional. I always like to say that I stumbled across student affairs as a career, but as the time passed, I realized this has been my calling all along. By the grace of God, I am blessed with the opportunities to support students who look like me and other underrepresented student populations to achieve their dreams and goals in life. My inspiration stems from my undergrad experience of not having the support that would have helped me navigate the beast of higher ed. I want to ensure that our students do not have that same experience and have more than enough resources to support them. I come from a community that leans on the support of others and collective care. We are stronger together, than we are alone. With the support from this program coupled with my professional and lived experiences, I strive to create a culture of love and care with all those I serve.
My higher education journey is one of the most fulfilling experiences in my life. It's an experience I never thought could be possible growing up and now I'm shepherding the way for the generations that come after me. It was one of my proudest accomplishments to be the first in my family to receive my bachelor's degree. Because I trotted a path that no one in my family has ever taken, I thought this was the end of my chapter of schooling. Upon entering the field of student affairs post-undergrad, I realized the limitations of what I wanted to do professionally because I didn't have a master's degree. I entered this program after working three years professionally. I believe wholeheartedly that the timing could not have been more perfect. My professional experience brought the practicality to the coursework and content we discussed throughout this program. I entered with imposter syndrome, but soon found that my professional experience in the field allowed me to grasp the content much quicker and pull from real-life experiences to showcase my understanding. Imposter phenomenon is just that, a phenomenon. I brought so much to this program, because I saw the doors it had opened for me. It allowed me to be my full authentic self, flaws and all. The acceptance from my cohort, my faculty, and advisors allowed me to flourish and become a better student affairs professional.
I think back when I was younger and being asked the question, "What do you want to be when you grow up?". I pondered on this question my whole life. It always shifted as I started hearing the possibilities of becoming this or that. My aspirations shifted as I went through college and slowly I started rephrasing this underlying question that would drive my career choice. Rather, the question I started asking myself was "What kind of person do I want to be?" This allowed me to hone in on the values that center me such as compassion, love and service towards others. I wanted to find a career that would honor and respect these values of mine, which led me towards the field of student affairs. It allowed me to be the person that leads with these values and shape the experiences of students of color and other underrepresented communities, such as mine.
In SDAD 5760: Leadership and Governance, I learned about contested issues within higher education. I saw that the frustrations and institutional student concerns of access, equity and social justice that I faced at my own institution were common issues at other institutions such as basic need initiatives for college students. I learned about best practices in the field and implemented this knowledge in my professional career. Addressing food insecurity among college students has always been a high point in my career thus far. Providing basic needs for students to achieve academic success helped me see that we are in the field of caring for the whole person. Through SDAD 5590 American Community College, I was affirmed to know that my professional research of food insecurity aligned with the research and best practices I gained through this course. STML 5610: Transformational Leadership was an inspiring course that helped me imagine the type of leader I want to be in life. I reflected on the leaders in my life and the leadership qualities I wanted to emulate. I realized that my leadership style emulated that of servant leadership (Greenleaf, 1998) incorporating collective care for others. In addition, pulling from Bordas' (2012) concept of "we" culture allows me to think collectively and ensuring that we are lifting as we are rising.
It is my hope that my portfolio serves as a reminder for myself of how far I came. This couldn't have been possible without my village of supporters. My faith in believing that what I am doing will benefit those I come across, has pushed me to continue to trod this path of unknown for me and the generations that come after me. I will be forever grateful for this opportunity with the SDA program and all the wonderful folks I connected with to bring me to this point of celebration and gratitude.