Last Saturday, Feb. 23, the Student Government Union hosted its semesterly Leadership Conference to inspire and improve Saint Leo’s future leaders. Some of the speakers at the conference were Sahil Punamia, Rasheed Ali Cromwell, Brittany Greene, Edson O’Neale, Kristina Niccolls, Michael Cadore and Julia Owens. Here are some summaries of some of the talks that were given.
Kristina Niccolls, Vice President of Finance on the SGU e-board, gave advice to students on how to request funding from the Senate. Niccolls said that there are three types of allocation requests: general club allocations, event allocations and conference allocations.
Credit: Kadyann Stupart
General Allocations are requests to use club funding. Every year, the SGU decides how much funding will be split amongst each club. This year, it was decided that every club gets two-hundred dollars to use. However, they must fill out a general allocation request to use any of this money. These requests must be submitted at least 10 business days (two weeks) in advance of when the money is planned to be spent. Niccolls wrote in her presentation that the easiest way to get your money approved is to request small amounts of money. You can make as many general allocation requests as you would like as long as you have remaining club funding.
Event allocations give students the ability to host on- or off-campus events for their community. The events must benefit and be accessible to the community outside of Saint Leo. These allocations must be submitted at least 20 business days (four weeks) before the event. You can make requests for as many events as you would like.
Michael Cadore spoke about professionalism in the workplace, while Rasheed Ali Cromwell presented the keynote at the start of the conference. Credit: Kadyann Stupart
Conference allocations provide funding for conferences. However, it does not cover the entire cost of attending the conference. Niccolls wrote that SGU tends to cover only about 75 percent of the funding for a conference, and the club or organization must come up with the remaining 25 percent.
The allocation forms can be found on EngageLeo, Saint Leo’s hub for all clubs and organizations. All allocation requests must include a budget saying exactly what the money will be spent on. The allocation must be approved by the Appropriations Committee in the Senate and by the Accounting Department. Niccolls says that this process can take a while.
Edson O’Neale, Director of Student Activities at Saint Leo University, gave advice on what could make or break students during their college experience. O’Neale recommends that the students should value more things than just money in their job search. He advises that, in addition to money, they should find careers that make them happy, positively impact other people’s lives and make a difference. He also recommends that students try new things to see what things they like and what things they don’t. O’Neale says that there are certain things that you’ll never know if you like them or not unless you try them.
“That’s what college is [all about]: having an open mind. You have to branch out. You have to try new things,” said O’Neale.
O’Neale also discussed that people should not play the victim when they are faced with adversity. He says that you should always take responsibility for your actions, which will amaze others and set you apart from everyone else. Finally, O’Neale said that the habits you develop in college will help you outside of college.
“Good things take time. Be patient. Things will come eventually…and in being patient, that will help you be able to find your passion,” said O’Neale.
One of the slides Brittany Greene used, illustrated that we show that we can decide to repeat a thought or not.
Brittany Greene, a financial advisor and alumni of Saint Leo University, gave students advice on how to take a hold of their futures by changing their mindset. Greene said that students need to put their mind over their mood when trying to achieve their goals. She said that what we think about most becomes a priority in our lives, so if someone thinks positive thoughts, then those positive thoughts become important to our lives. She also said that the more often we think about something, the more importance it has.
“What you think is what you attract,” said Greene.
Greene also stressed the need for a growth mindset, or a mindset that says people’s abilities are not fixed, but rather, their abilities can change and improve. She compared a fixed mindset and a growth mindset to someone saying, “I’m broke now, so I’ll always be broke” (which would be a fixed mindset) and someone saying, “I’m broke now, but that doesn’t mean I will be broke forever” (which would be a growth mindset). Greene said that a direct consequence of the growth mindset is that you learn to love failure because it gives you an opportunity to learn and to grow.
For more photos of the presenters and students at the Leadership Conference, visit the Lions’ Pride Media Group’s Facebook page.
