Coursework

 

To view this piktochart in higher quality follow the link: https://create.piktochart.com/output/34359074-poverty-in-america (Links to an external site.)

The following link provides the presentation information done in coordination to the embedded paper on Steve Jobs and his leadership characteristics and traits: Research Presentation

Throughout my college career I have been placed with many opportunities and leadership roles that have helped shaped my future visions. At the age of eighteen I had a flawless five year plan that mapped out everything I wanted to accomplish within this amount of time; however, life had different plans of leading me where I am today. The leadership roles and academic journey that have brought me to the point in my life where I am have shaped me into the citizen leader I want to continue to be throughout my future endeavors. I began college as a freshmen who thought I could conquer the world in four short years. When I entered college, I attended a different university and I thought that I had positioned myself for a perfect future; however, I never knew how much I was missing until I transferred to Longwood. It was not until I began Longwood did I see the potential in myself for everything that was about to come my way.

The transition to college is one that can be extremely difficult in finding oneself, sense of purpose for present and future goals, and generating plans for what that lies ahead. Transferring from one university to another might not be the ideal plan, but for me it was the best decision I could have made. Deciding to leave my comfort zone is the exact place I found myself. The decisions I have made that have lead me to where I am could not have been accomplished without taking a leap of faith and opening new doors. As I think about who I am today and the journey I took to get here I cannot help, but reflect upon leadership roles and experiences I have encountered. When I entered my first university I felt like a small fish in a big pond, I felt that I could never find myself, I could never stand above the crowd, I could not possibly be someone everyone knew. Immediately entering my freshman year, I did not get involved and felt defeated that what I thought I wanted out of college was diminished within the first month of being in college. It was then, in that moment, I knew the only way I could change was simply by changing myself. I opened a new door, closed the old, and never looked back.

I entered Longwood eager for new opportunities that would follow within the next three years, but never did I imagine I would be where I am today. I wanted a place I could call home and I wanted a place where I would be pushed and expected to be nothing less than the best I could be. Longwood was where I left my comfort zone and begin working on becoming the best version of myself. Longwood is where I left my comfort zone and found myself. Upon entering Longwood, I immediately took interest in clubs and organizations on campus making my place known and letting myself stand out…not sit down. I joined a sorority my second semester in college and from that point forward my vision of myself as an individual and as a leader became clear. I found myself stepping up to any opportunities that came my way. I took a leadership position within my sorority immediately following the semester I joined. This past summer, I worked on campus as a Summer and Events Conference Associate working on Longwood’s campus helping the school community. Throughout my journey I have encountered many opportunities and leadership roles that placed me far from where my eighteen year-old-self imagined I would be, but exactly where I never knew I needed to be.

 

I am a responsible college student with a 3.55 GPA. I am currently majoring in Liberal Studies with a minor in Leadership Studies. Throughout my academic career, I have worked hard to provide myself with leadership roles on campus to serve the Longwood community. I currently serve on executive board for my sorority on campus. This leadership role has prepared me for qualifying communication skills within a professional setting and a strong work ethic in meeting goals, dates, and needs of those around me. While focusing on academic and extracurricular projects, I have developed adaptability skills, organizational management, communication skills, and creative thinking, which I hope to leverage in working within the Higher Education setting.

I have recently decided to switch to Higher Education for my future career and see this position as the ideal opportunity to contribute the skills I am developing from my academic studies. I would value and honor the position of working in your office and feel that I would be a strong assist to the team through my strong work ethic, communication skills, and other qualifications. I look forward to elaborating on how my skills and abilities will benefit the Higher Education community.

Previously I was enrolled in education classes through the teacher preparation program, these classes emerged me into the classroom setting and allowed me to determine that the ideal career path that I thought I wanted to pursue was not indeed where my future lied. Through this extensive coursework and experience within the academic field the future was clear that I would not see myself in the classroom setting. It was through these intensive educational courses that I found a different career path that I quickly became passionate about. These intense, extensive educational courses showed me that if you do not love something, it is not for you. That semester I learned more about myself and learned that the only person who has the power to change the future is … myself. As I began to find myself and find the road I wanted to travel to finish my undergraduate work I began leaning towards leadership tendencies. It was here that I realized my potential in the minor of leadership studies. I enrolled in my leadership studies courses and never looked back. I have intensely taken on this minor to finish within a two semester grace period. These courses allow myself to think critically and in depth on being a leader, what a leader is, leadership styles, and challenge my intellectual abilities in and outside the classroom.  The classes I am studying will transform me into an educated leader with different perspective and insights. Moreover, these courses allow me to examine myself as a leader and where I see my potential leadership abilities in the future. Through these courses I have gained greater insight on who I am and where I see myself. Life does not always go according to plan, but the journey in which each individual takes is leading them to where they are suppose to be. The courses I thought would help me to solidify the fact of being a teacher only made me question my whole future, but this is where I began to see my future in a different perspective. The courses I am in now, which I never imagined I would be taking, allow me to see a clear representation of what I want to do and where I want to be. Although my courses now are relevant to what I want to do, it is only because of my past courses that I can say I am where I need to be. The courses I took, the educational journey I have traveled, have lead me to the relevant courses I am immersed in now.

Relevant Courses Currently Enrolled In

• Leadership Studies 120
• Political Science 394
• Management 362

Previous Courses Enrolled In

• Education 310
• Education 361
• Education 261

The first data set that I examined dealt with the educational levels for ages twenty five and older in the county of Chesterfield. The total amount of population in Chesterfield county is 316,236. Of that 316,236 there are 220,124 who were identified in the year 2016 for their educational attainment. Moreover, the graph determines those of which did or did not receive an educational background and how much education was received. The educational groups are identified as: less than 9th grade, 9th to 12th grade with no diploma, high school graduate (includes equivalence), some college with no degree, associate’s degree, bachelor’s degree, and graduate or professional degree. The pie chart is titled: Educational Levels for Ages 25 and Over in Chesterfield County.

Furthermore, the graph shows the levels of educational attainment reached for residents in Chesterfield County of those who are age twenty five years and older. For those who received less than a 9th grade education there were a total of 7,227 people which estimated to be about 3.30%. The people who received an education as high as 9th to 12th grade without receiving a diploma totals for 11,634 people which is estimated to be about 5.30%.  Those who received a high school graduation diploma totals for 52,290 people which estimated to be about 23.80%. The people who identified as having some college with no degree total for roughly 48,091 people which estimated to be about 21.80%. Those people who are accounted for obtaining an associate’s degree in the county of Chesterfield is about 17,918 people which is estimated to be about 8.10% of the overall population. Those who have a bachelor’s degree are a total of 51,287 people which is estimated to be 23.3%. Lastly, those who received a graduate or professional degree total to 31,677 people with an estimated 14.4% of the total population.

I chose to do a pie chart because of the ability to see the total of the population in one easy chart. This chart gives access to the total amount and the percentage; moreover, the chart shows how much of an impact each different educational level has in reference to the total community of ages twenty five and older in Chesterfield County.  Educational levels are portrayed in the chart and shown with different colors to help identify each level. My reasoning for doing colors that were much different from one another is it make the chart easier to read and the educational levels identifiable from afar. Furthermore, I choose the region of Chesterfield County because this is were I live and have lived all my life. I found the data and statistics to be very interesting. The data shows that the highest level of educational attainment is high school graduate at 23.8% of the total population; however, those people with bachelor’s degree is at a percentage of 23.3 of the total population. The difference between the two is .5% which is not an extremely large amount. This data was very interesting to view and make into a chart to see the visual representation of the different educational attainment through groups ages twenty five and above.

https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?src=C

The next graph that I examined had to deal with poverty levels for the population of Chesterfield County throughout all ages of the general population. Moreover, the poverty level was identified within the ranges of: under age of five, age 5 to 17 years, age 18 to 34 years, age 35 to 64 years, and age 65 years and older. For this data set I compared two different sets of data to analyze the correlation between age and educational attainment in reference to poverty levels. I gathered information from both sets of data to see the connection, if any, between age and educational levels. The educational attainment categories were as follows: less than high school graduate, high school graduate, some college / associate’s degree, and bachelor’s degree and higher. Two line graphs were created to examine and analyze the data sets. The first set of data being examined about age in poverty and the second being about educational attainment in poverty.

Furthermore, the graph identifies that in Chesterfield County ages five and under there is a total of 19,361 total children who fall in the poverty level. For ages 5 to 17 years the total number of people who fall under poverty is 60,360 people. Those who are aged 18 to 34 years old account for 66,589 people who fall under the poverty level in Chesterfield County. For ages 35 to to 64 years old the amount of people who fall under the poverty level account for 138,435 people. Lastly, for ages 65 years and older the population of those who fall under poverty is 42,219 people. The other graph that I created looked at the poverty levels for educational attainment. Those results included people with less than a high school degree which accounted for 18,586 people. High school graduates included in the poverty level account for 51,999 people. Those with some college or associate’s degree include 65,762 people. Those people with a bachelor’s degree or higher account for 82,927 people in Chesterfield County.

The information I gathered between the two graphs is very interesting to see the results of the data analyzed. I choose to continue to do Chesterfield County because it is where I live and the results were interesting to compare to each graph that was conducted. I did the line graph for this particular data to show the correlation between age and poverty and educational attainment and poverty. The line graph shows the relationship between the two situations and how they correlate to one another.

https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?src=CF