Jamie Sohngen sohngeje@mail.uc.

edu Linder College of Business Bachelor of Business Administration, International Business Project Title: FYLP Experience Thematic Area: Leadership Start date: January 6th, 2014 End Date: April 26th, 2014

Self-Designed Experiential Learning Proposal

1. Abstract My project focuses on the work I will be doing through the First Year Leadership Program (FYLP) during spring semester, and can be broken into two separate initiatives: my experience as an intern and my experience as a team member. For those who are unfamiliar with the club, FLYP is an exclusive group of freshmen who are paired up with a member of Student Government and help that member with their duties and projects. We meet on Monday evenings and learn more about Student Governments role on campus so that we can act as liaisons for freshman looking to get involved or find out about activities around campus. Another way the members of FYLP are involved on campus will be through initiatives meant to improve campus life at UC. My SG mentor is Jaisha Garnett Director of LGBTQ Affairs, and she is amazing. Most of her work includes assisting the LGBTQ Center with their events and acting as their Student Government Representative, but she also plans activities of her own that include the LGBTQ Center and other minorities groups on campus. One of our larger events that we are working on right now is the Drag Race beauty pageant this Friday, November 22nd in TUC, which will be repeated in the coming semester. Another thing to look forward to come spring semester will be LGBTQ Awareness Week, which consists of different events and activities each day that raise awareness of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender issues in everyday life and increase tolerance and acceptance of these groups. The second part of my experience will involve participating in a group of five fellow FYLP members to create and enact an initiative of our own on campus that will improve the UC student experience. Neither the groups nor the initiatives have been decided on yet, but some ideas include increasing awareness and understanding of the UC Shuttle system, improving commuter life by giving them lockers or a place to study/stay on campus, cleaning up campus, etc. These projects are important to me because they have strong connections to two of my deeper passions: gay rights and UC. Growing up with liberal beliefs in a conservative town was always a struggle for me, especially when I had to endure some of my friends using the word gay in a defamatory manner. A good number of the adult figures in my life are gay, and since I was little they have been there for me and very supportive of everything I did. It hurt that I could not relate to many of my peers, even a few close friends, about not only the importance of gay rights, but the simple fact that there is no difference between a gay, straight, or transgender person. Working with Jaisha on her initiatives that celebrate these fantastic people feels so rewarding and right that I would do it even if I had not been accepted into FYLP. The undetermined project to improve UC is personally meaningful as well for the obvious reason that I love my college and want to help it become the best university it can be. Our campus should be the most beautiful, versatile, easily accessible, dependable university to cater perfectly to its diverse student population, and I would like to make an effort and impact to get it there. As far as the time commitment for this experience goes, it is hard to give a definite schedule of how many hours per week I will dedicate to these projects. Certainly during the LGBTQ Awareness week I will be giving many hours to our many activities every day, and the Drag Race itself lasts four hours (this all excludes the time dedicated to planning, organizing, and setting up each event). The only steady meeting time I can acknowledge for certain will be my weekly meetings with Jaisha to discuss where we are at, what we are

working on currently, what we need to do, etc. The other project will demand a large time commitment as well, but because that initiative is yet to be determined there is no telling when or how the hours will be spent carrying out that part of the experience. I can only assume that the team of FLYPers and I will be meeting at least once a week to check base with each other, much like I do with Jaisha. I have no doubt that these numerous projects, between two roles, under one experience will far exceed the minimum 75-90 required hours of dedication. 2. Connection to Learning Outcomes within an Honors Thematic Area The thematic area that this experience will focus on is Leadership, and especially the following bullets: Possesses knowledge of various leadership theories and identifies with characteristics of leadership Has ability to relate, communicate and work effectively with peers Develops a vision of the future and acknowledges impacts of decisions

The first learning outcome will be accomplished through our Monday night FYLP meetings, where we discuss what it means to be a leader, different leadership styles, and qualities a leader can possess. I can later identify those theories and qualities in my own actions pertaining to my intern work with Jaisha and my teamwork with my fellow FYLPers. The second relates to my ability to work with the other first years on my team to carry out our plan to improve UC student life, and may also apply to my relationship with Jaisha, the members of the LGBTQ Center, and the UC student body. Lastly, the third point relates directly to the initiative that my team and I will develop as its goal is to impact UC in a positive manner. We will create a vision for our project that will hopefully make a lasting impression on our school. 3. Connection to Goals and Academic Theories A. The FYLP experience will greatly contribute to my future professional and personal goals because it will polish my leadership skills and grant that my self-confidence grow as well. This will aid me in achieving my professional goals of not only holding a good job, but excelling at it because I will have leadership and teamwork experience. Having the chance to work with a more diverse people and raise awareness of their rights/ how poorly they are treated by some fulfills a personal goal of mine because, as I explained above, gay rights is very important to me. By participating in FYLP and working with Jaisha, I will feel as if I am returning the love towards all of the gay, lesbian, and bisexual friends and family figures in my life who have given so much love to me. It would be rewarding enough to simply show them in this manner how I support them like they have supported me. Finally, I would like to give back to my school, the University of Cincinnati, which by accepting me for enrollment has opened the door to endless possibilities for me. I want our initiative to make a difference on campus and leave it in a better state than it was before we joined FYLP and began our initiative. B. FYLP involves weekly meetings that review and discuss different leadership theories and aspects of leadership. As we often have guest speakers, I could use the knowledge they share as guidance on how I should behave as a leader. For example, we recently heard from Provost Davenport and some of the advice she gave us included taking risks, building relationships, and inspiring hope. Other resources I could use such as books and essays on leadership would also be helpful if I am struggling to make a tough decision or need direction when managing difficult relationships. Two books that the Harvard Business Review website suggests every young leader should read are Jim Collins Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the LeapAnd Others Dont and Bill Georges True North: Discover Your Authentic Leadership.

4. Initiative, Independence and/or Creativity The project that I will be working on with a team of FYLP members will be our own initiative; we used our creative skills to come up with an idea on how to improve campus life, we will take the initiative to organize and execute our design, and we will do all of this independently of pre-existing campaigns of the university. Of course, we will be reporting to our FYLP Director Sarah Carpenter on our progress and receive feedback from her, but she will not be directly involved in executing our initiative. My role as intern involves less independence, however, I will be given the chance to suggest ideas to Jaisha for activities during LGBTQ Awareness week and other events. I must take initiative with everything I work on with Jaisha because of the nature of our relationship; I can take on as much responsibility as I want and may back off when my schedule tightens. Without taking initiative, my work with Jaisha and the LGBTQ Center would be nonexistent. I have already proven my ability to come up with ideas and execute them in other organizations I am involved in, such as the Pizza Party I organized for Delta Sigma Pia professional business fraternity. What started as an idea I mentioned at a chapter meeting turned into an actual night of pizza and brotherhood bonding because I dedicated my efforts to making it possible. My unique contribution to my experience is that I am connected to many groups that do not often associate themselves with the LGBTQ Center. As a freshman, I can connect to other first years who are interested in what the Center has to offer and may not know the group exists. Already I have been able to reach out and find volunteers for our fall Drag Race. I am also a business major and Delta Sigma Pi Pledge, spending many hours in the Lindner College of Business each week. I have posted flyers on my fraternitys social page on Facebook and have left other flyers in some offices in LCB. 5. Reflection In order to reflect on all of the work I will be doing, I will create a virtual schedule that records all of the days and times I am working on a project. I can create links that lead to separate pages for each event that goes on with pictures and information about it. This will help me to remember how much time I put into each activity as well as remind me what I should be preparing for. 6. Dissemination Because all of the work I will be doing goes into actual events and projects at UC, I believe a final presentation would not be necessary. The outcome of our planning and organizing will be the success of the events Jaisha and I put on/help the LGBTQ Center put on and the team project. As a final reflective essay on my experience, I would describe some of the challenges I faced, some of the personal rewards and satisfaction I got out of it, and how my leadership skills improved over the semester. 7. Project Advisor This experience will require cooperation with many different advisors, student and faculty. Jaisha Garnett and Sarah Carpenter for obvious reasons will be heavily involved because of my constant collaboration with them on projects. _________, who is in charge of the LGBTQ Center, would also be overseeing much of the work I do through the LGBTQ Center. Depending on the subject of the project or the nature of our work, we will choose an advisor who is also passionate about our initiative. This could be an Intro to Co-op teacher or a Director of Co-op if our project involves educating students about different ways to enhance their learning outside of the classroom, for example.