LEADERSHIP TEST

1.List the office you would like to receive and explain why you
deserve it.
The office I am seeking is Colonel and I deserve it because I am very
passionate about dance and I work extremely hard. Also, being on this
team makes me happy beyond compare and as an officer I want to
reciprocate that happiness onto all of my team members. Throughout the
2016-2017 year, I was extremely happy to come to dance all the time. I feel
that my feelings were tied into the leadership team and how friendly they
made the dance environment. Its important as an officer to give all the
members respect, love and emit positivity so that they can be happy and
motivated. Not to mention, being friends with a line officer as well as
looking up to them is a very idealistic combination, for I never once doubted
that their intentions were for the benefit of the team. Having an
approachable line officer team establishes friendships throughout the
members, and establishes trust, healthy relationships, and therefore an
overall more successful team. I also feel I am a very strong natural leader, I
have never struggled with taking the lead or ever been scared to speak up
when a leader is needed. My leading abilities are like instincts, i just hear a
voice in my head that tells me, Help them, they need you. Step up, its not
that hard. Remind them, dont let your team get in trouble.

2.Who, other than yourself, would you like to be Colonel and why?
I believe that Emma Wood most deserves Colonel because she is one of
those people that is so genuine, kind, trustworthy, extremely ambitious,
intelligent, focused at all times, but at the same time she is such a goofball
when it is necessary. She never fails to cheer others up and no matter what
she is experiencing, she gives and gives until she has nothing left. She
puts others before herself and has never had bad blood with a single
member. If anything, she has had close relations with every single member
for as long as I can remember. Even in Pep Squad she would reach out
and try to include everyone. Not to mention she is so talented and
passionate about what she does. She has been dancing her whole life and
I feel as if everything has lead up to this shining moment of success for her.
I would trust her to lead the 2017-2018 team into a year of success.

3.Which do you feel should be more heavily weighted, overall ability,

or leadership qualities when choosing an officer?
I believe that overall ability and leadership skills are equally as important to
create a strong role model and leader. It is important for an officer to be
decently flexible, have good technique, and have past knowledge of
different dance genres. If an officer has impressive physical abilities, that
will also motivate the team to work harder, but the officer must also know
how to lead. If she has no idea how to lead a team, but is phenomenal at
dancing, she will just be looked up to for dancing abilities, but not respected
as a leader or not viewed as dependable for help in conflicts that may come
up in the year. On the other hand, if she is a strong commander but does
not have decent physical abilities, she may not receive as much respect
because she may lack the traits she is trying to teach/establish in the team,
perhaps technique, flexibility, showmanship, precision, etc. (all imperative
traits an ideal Silver Stars Drill member should have). There must be a
balance between dancing ability and leadership qualities!

4.Do you feel a candidate's grade (10th, 11th, 12th) should affect their
tryout and/or their rank?
I feel a candidates grade should affect their tryout/rank because a younger
candidate will not have as much experience on the team, experience
dancing, or even life experience as an older candidate will. A senior should
have a slightly better chance than a junior because for the senior, its her
final year, while for the junior, she still has 2 years worth of memories to
create and leadership opportunities. Not to mention, older girls on the team
are taken more seriously for being the wise ones, the ones who know
best. They know the most about what goes on in the year, and theyre the
ones who know most about what the director wants and what the spirit
program is aiming to achieve. Due to their past experience with multiple
officer teams, older candidates also had leaders to compare, while the
younger candidates only experienced one leadership team and will solely
lead according to what they learned from them. Senior officers, all in all,
simply tend to know what an ideal leader looks like better than juniors.

5.Do you feel that you have the maturity to deal with problems that
will arise during the year? Explain.
Yes, I have the maturity to deal with problems that arise during the year
because of my ability to easily approach people and solve the personal
problems they may be having. I am a trustworthy person and I feel dance
has matured me to keep things under control and to keep unnecessary
drama from entering my life. I am also not ignorant towards whats going on
with others and I am happy to help anyone at anytime. My intentions are to
better everyone's experiences on the team and keep all those experiences
positive. I also find it easy to motivate others because Im such a cheerful
person whenever Im in dance and I have a positive outlook since I am
always finding something to look forward to.

6.What is your primary reason for wanting to become an officer at

Reagan High School?
My primary reason for wanting to become an officer at Rhs is I feel deeply
about lifting others up, having a successful team that is pushed everyday to
become a better version of itself, and I feel that being a line officer is
something I will excel at due to my natural leading abilities. What easier
way to have a successful team than to have leaders who lead with
confidence, ease and strength?
7.How do you feel that your team views you as a person? As a leader?
I feel my team views me as a very fun and goofy person, I am always trying
to crack a joke and make people smile and enjoy themselves but as a
leader I am not afraid to speak what I feel is right and to take the lead to
help others and to make sure no one gets in trouble. My team definitely
views me as a strong leader for the whole year I have been proving myself
time after time, a lot of times without even realizing it. I am always looking
for a way to steer others away from their negativity and from future
punishments and pushing them towards safety and greatness. I never want
anyone to get in trouble so I make it clear as to what everyone needs to be
doing to stay on track.

8.List five characteristics of the ideal line member.

Five characteristics of the ideal line member are focused, hard-working,
trustworthy, positive, and confident. Focused because they have to have
their eye on the prize, and not be constantly getting distracted.
Hard-working, to motivate/inspire other and to simply be a good example of
how much effort everyone must put in. Trustworthy because trust is
imperative to have among a team in order to have strong friendships.
Positive to block out the negativity and instincts to complain others may be
having, also to pump everyone up along with them instead of bringing
others down by having a mediocre attitude towards things. Confident
because a leader must be confident and sure in herself and her actions in
order that other feel safe following her instruction.

9.Do you fit each of these characteristics? How?

I fit each of these characteristics because these 5 traits are traits I have
been improving upon, especially this past year, without even realizing it. I
show that I am focused because dance is one of my top priorities, it is all I
think about whenever I am outside of school and it is one of my biggest
passions. I have my mind set on high goals for the team and I will refuse to
let my standards falter, no matter the situation. I am hard-working, and that
is noticeable just by watching me dance. I am constantly sweating, out of
breath, yet I keep on pushing myself, and I dont allow myself to quit, even
when Im under pressure. I am trustworthy because I am an easily
approachable person, I am open to people talking to me and I even
encourage it. I try my best not to scare the babies away by smiling at them
and reaching out to them first a lot of the time. I hate letting people down so
whenever someone needs help, Im there, whenever i make a promise to
someone, I follow through. I emit a positive attitude because I repeatedly
try to bring the people around mes energy up by giving them things to look
forward to, reminding them the things they should be grateful for, etc. I also
try my hardest to never complain or show negative emotions, just looking at
everything from an optimistic eye.

10.Estimate the amount of time that you feel will be involved for the
new officers during the summer.
The amount of time that will be involved for the new officers in the summer
will be around 2 and a half weeks worth of work. If we work diligently and
get everything done in May, as we plan to do, the summer should be a
smooth ride and a time for the whole team to get well-deserved rest.
However we will, of course, be working our butts off at officer camp and
team camp, and perhaps UDA camp, and have some extra officer practices
to really solidify all the football routines/choreography we may start coming
up with for competition season. We will also be having to plan Rattler
Round Up to kick off the school year with a solid and fun performance!

11.Do you feel that you can stand on your own judgment and make
decisions as an officer that may lose you a few friends? Are you
sure? Explain.
I feel that I can stand on my own judgement and make decisions as an
officer because whenever I make a decision I feel is truly just, I do not care
about other people's opinions. After making an important decision, I do not
look back. As a leader, I have to stick with my word and not doubt myself,
or else those following me will begin to doubt their trust in me. If what I say
is for the benefit of everyone, which it should be as an officer making
decisions, everyone should be able to follow me and know that my
intentions are to help them. I can definitely make decision as an officer that
may lose me a few friends because it has already happened to me that i
step up to the plate and certain people stay clear of me, sometimes even
just because I care about my image and the image of my team and I refuse
to do bad things that could risk my place on the team.

12.In a situation where the director gave you an order and neither you
nor the team agrees with it, what would you do?
In a situation where the director gave me and order and neither I nor the
team agrees with it, I would follow it anyway. The director knows more than
the whole teams brains combined, and she has the final, and most
powerful say in what goes. Her only want is to make us all stronger, and
although at time we may not believe that, once the results of her order
appear, we all realize how necessary that decision was.

13.What is your opinion of the merit/demerit system? How do you see

the officers being a part of this system?
My opinion of the merit/demerit system is there would be utter chaos
without it. It establishes discipline and teaches the team to follow rules and
to protect their reputation, the reputation of their team, and the reputation of
this entire organization. It keeps order and control. The officers are a part of
this system by following all the rules of it, obviously, since they are the
examples that the team look up to for guidance and decision-making many
times. Also, it is part of the officers jobs to make sure the merit/demerit
system is being followed at all times. If not, the officers should give a
punishment to those not obliging to the rules to teach them the importance
of discipline on this team. When necessary, the officers must come to the
director over conflicts and should never lie about who followed/did not
follow the rules.

14.What previous officer do you admire the most and why?

The previous officer I admire the most is Katelyn Gutierrez. I admire her the
most because of her unwavering positive attitude and contagious smile,
she can be so goofy and fun but she is also one of the most determined
people I have ever met. When someone would challenge her, she would
never drop her guard and she always established rules to better us as a
team. She pushed us to work harder than we knew we could work and in
the end we all tasted pure victory thanks to her.

15.What would you do if you heard a line member or even another

officer making negative comments about the director?
If I heard a line member or even another officer making negative comments
about the director I would not involve myself in joining their conversation, I
would walk into the director's office and tell her. Rumors and negative
comments only divide the team, and should not be tolerated.

16.If you saw a line member behaving in an immoral manner at a

party, what should you do? (Immoral meaning tobacco, alcohol,
drugs, sex) Do you feel that the director should be informed?
If I saw a line member behaving in an immoral matter at a party, I would
inform the director. Officers are the example of the team and if they are
caught, or even not caught, the team will think the immoral things they are
doing are tolerable. It's important that the director is informed right away
because if the team finds out before the director, they will think they can
sneak around and not get caught since the line members arent getting
caught. The team follows the behavior of the line members, if line members
party, but punish other for doing these things, they are just hypocrites. No
one is going to take the officer seriously and will be more likely to disobey
what she says. Not to mention, people will lose respect for those people
and they are ruining the reputation of our organization.

17.As an officer, how will you handle Senioritis when it hits this
time next year? (yourself and the rest of the team)
As an officer, I will handle senioritis when it

18.What will you do when your best friend on the team challenges
your authority as an officer?

19.Define self-discipline. How does this apply to being an officer?

Self-discipline is having enough control of your mind to ignore the negative
thoughts you may be having and focusing on the voice of your best
conscience. This applies to being an officer because when life throws
terrible situations at your team and you, you have to be the strong one and
pull yourself, and the whole team out of whatever pickle you encounter.
Even though others may be speaking negatively, you cannot. You are a
leader, and part of your job is to not let yourself sink down or surrender to
the negativity, and also to never let anyone challenge what your
conscience knows is truly right. You must be the reason the people around
you come back happy to dance after encountering what may have been the
worst day of their life. However, you must never view it as the worst day, for
anytime you get to be with your team is an awesome day. Of course, some
days will be better than others, but your self-discipline is whats going to
save you from losing your mind. Never lost your right judgement. Never
give in to the negativity. If others already did, help them out!

20.Define initiative. Do you have it?

Initiative is taking the lead without being asked to. I have initiative because
there were multiple instances in which chaos could have occurred because
maybe the officers had to step out of the room and didnt leave anyone in
charge, or there was an emergency, or I was simply alone with the team
and things started to get out of control. However, before anything bad could
happen, my leading instincts kicked in, I heard that big voice in my head
telling me to take charge and help my team. I spoke up, got everyone in roll
call, took roll, warmed-up and stretched, and began practicing recent
changes, running routines, or working out, etc.I have never hesitated to
take initiative, for my mind knows the team should always be productive
and taking advantage of our time together rather than goofing around. We
can still have fun while getting what we need to get done, done.

21.How important is an officers attitude toward the following aspects

of school conduct?
Boy-Girl conduct
Lady-like conduct (cursing, smoking, drinking)
Conforming to school rules: skipping, etc.
An officers attitude towards these rules of conduct must be respectful,
agreeing with theses rules, following them, and making sure others
are following them. Boy-girl conduct-wise, she must not be showing
PDA in uniform or out of uniform, for she is representing her team,
not to mention she needs to respect her body. Lady-like
conduct-wise, an officer must also oblige, for these are easy rules to
live by. To be a pure role model one must not be cursing,
DEFINITELY not drinking or smoking, she is representing the whole
dance program! Conforming to school rules is also a must, skipping
will not be tolerated from any member but especially not someone
leading others. Officers cannot be hypocritical, because trying to
make others follow conduct, but not following conduct is one of the
worst things someone could do in an officer position. Not to mention,
by not following any of the school rules, officers will lose respect from
peers, teammates, her coach, etc. Its embarrassing to be called out
for something as easy as following rules! Officers must also watch out
for her teammates, if she sees any of them breaking theses rules she
must inform the director so that she can have a talk with them,
 according to the gravity of the situation, to make sure they know that
what theyre doing is not tolerated on this team.

22.How will you provide motivation to your team members during

times where morale is at a low?
I will provide motivation to my team members during times where morale is
at a low by playing a fun game to get them excited before an important
practice. Also just simply planning bonding activities outside of school like a
team dinner, team bowling night, team roller skating, team mini golfing. Or
taking a fun trip with the team somewhere downtown like the riverwalk or to
Six Flags Fiesta Texas. Fun time should be allowed during tough times
such as competition season to keep everyone positive, bond us together so
that we can talk about our common goals, and to make us work even
harder the next time we practice.

23.What should you do when you hear rumors about the director, the
team, or individuals on the team?
When I hear rumors about the director, the team, or individuals on the team
I should bring it up with whomever the rumor is about, make sure its not
true, (which most of the time, it is not), and then make sure every member
on the team knows it is not true. If the officer team can solve the rumor
problem before it gets out of hand, the problem can eliminated altogether
early on. However, if the rumor is about the director its imperative to bring
it up to her as soon as we hear about it, not talking about it with others on
the team. I know a lot of times team members make up rumors or assume
things about the director, as happened this year, and then end up asking
the line officers if its true. As soon as that happens, the officers must do
what the officers this year did, which is inform the director and make sure
an announcement is made to the team that the information assumed is not
true.

24.What do you see as your role in choreography for the teams

routines?
I see my role in choreography for the teams routines as highly involved to
help in any way I can. I come up with creative transitions and tricks, as you
may see in my officer dance and solo. Im great at coming up with jazz
pom, and military choreography in specific, but I can do pretty much any
genre that Silver Stars have been doing in the past (i.e. military, hip hop,
jazz, pom, etc.).

25.Place the following items in order of importance according to your

standards, NOT what you think the directors are:

What the team wants

What the officers want
What the director wants
In order, according to my standards:
What the director wants
What the officers want
What the team wants

26.What have you done this year to prove that you are ready and
deserving of an officer position?
This year, I have really put myself out there, I have grown socially and as a
leader. I have tried to get to know all the groups and unite us, I have
become friends with most of the team and I have found that benefitted me
and made this year much more positive as a result. In an officer position,
you cannot ignore a single persons role on this team and I have become a
social butterfly to the point of I am not scared to come up to people and get
to know them and later on to give them corrections or to steer them in the
right direction. I always am that one person yelling out what comes next in
choreography or changes in routines, throughout the year for I have found
it really helps other people remember things better. Also, as a socie, my
knowledge of this program has grown an immense amount and working
closely with this years line officer and watching them work has given me an
inside look at what I will be doing as a line officer. I have really developed
my clueless, sophomore self into a strong, improved dancer and role
model, who can still develop even more. I am always doing what I am
supposed to be doing, and I have proved myself throughout football games,
band dance rehearsals/competitions, in class, at practices, at competitions,
etc. for my sake and for others sake. I strive to be the best example
possible, for i hate to be anything less than my best. I have learned what
its like to work my hardest and then break through the barrier of whats
holding me back from working to an even harder extent. The potential in
me that you saw my sophomore year blossomed into a natural leader who
is not afraid to take charge, do what is right, and to motivate herself and
others. I have pushed myself harder than ever this year, for example, trying
out for the UDA nationals team in the hip hop genre (my least strong genre,
may I add), being put on that team as an alternate, but always going full out
at every UDA practice, working on my quality of movement, perfecting hip
hop skills, etc. to finally have all my hard work pay off and get to perform at
the nationals stage with everyone else. TO GET 6TH IN THE NATION! An
experience I got to have thanks to my director taking a chance on a girl with
some potential at the beginning of summer who turned that potential into a
mature, focused, dancer by the time 2017 came around.

27.Whats something you admire about another team that you would
like to see us adopt, in our own way, at Reagan?
Something I admire about another team that I would like to see us adopt, in
our own way, at Reagan, is team activities that other teams do, for example
Johnson does an end of the year pool party. I think this would be a fun idea
for Reagan to do if we make something productive out of it but also have a
good time with both teams! I also know the other teams from UDA
Nationals who had advanced hip hop tricks must have gotten training from
someone and it would be a great advantage for our own team to start
training to be as advanced as the JVs at Nationals.
28.HOW would we go about implementing the thing that you admire
about the other team? Be specific.
We would go about implementing the above mentioned by having a tricks
class with all of Stars combined with all of Diamonds, perhaps twice a
month or simply in the summer, to have a professional come in and teach
us technique for tricks. The pool party we could do in the summer before
the school year starts, instead of an end of the year party, as Johnson has
it, we could do a kick off to the school year instead. We could have a
scavenger hunt with different teams of veterans mixed with rookies so that
more people can get to know each other and have a fun experience
together. After the scavenger hunt we could head to the pool and have a
barbeque dinner together, and by that time bigs and littles have already
met and everyone can hand out together before the school year starts.

29.If you do not make it for officer, what do you see your role being on
next years team?
If I do not make it for officer or get the position I want, of course I'll be
disappointed, but as a senior I cant let my team down just because i didnt
get what I wanted. Everything happens for a reason, and there will be
plenty opportunities to lead and help my teammates regardless of having
the title of an "officer."

30.If you do not make it for officer, or the position you want, describe
to me how your attitude will be with the director, team and officers
that do make it. Think in terms of the entire year.
If I do not make it for officer or get the position I want, I will continue
obeying the rules, respecting the officers, respecting my team, and be a
leader just without the title. I will continue pushing myself and improving
everyday, and just enjoying what I love. As a senior it is my duty anyway to
be a good example and to help out the officers regardless of being a line
officer.