Recap: Leadership Workshop I 2022
by Camille Wang (G4)
Another successful iteration of the biennial Leadership Workshop I, designed for early G phase students, was held at Alumni Hall on the Vanderbilt campus, the first since the pandemic to be held entirely in person. The workshop was co-chaired by Juan Colazo (G4) and Camille Wang (G4), as well as members of the leadership team (Bryn Sierra and Dr. Chris Williams) and junior chairs: Matthew Loberg (G3), John Shelley (G3), Avery Bogart (G2), and Clara Si (G2).
This year, the committee increased the integration of the CliftonStrengths Assessment into the workshop, an assessment that measures one’s talents and strengths and groups them into overarching themes. Dr. RC Stabile and Daniel Coradazzi, both CliftonStrengths coaches and holding leadership positions at Vanderbilt, kicked off the leadership workshop with an hour long Cliftons workshop. Following this session, student chairs and Dr. Mark Cannon, Professor of Leadership and Organizations and Human and Organizational Development, led three blocks centered around three main themes: Expectations and Feedback, Group Dynamics, and Motivations and Values. The didactics and cases were updated to reflect more current times, including how the pandemic has affected lab dynamics.
The workshop closed with a reception and dinner prior to the keynote event, which was open to the entire MSTP. This year, the workshop was extremely honored to host Zulfat Suara, an at large council member who is the first Muslim woman elected in the State of Tennessee and the first Nigerian woman elected to any office in the United States. She spoke on the importance of standing your ground in the face of adversity, her journey as the spouse of a physician researcher, as well as finding purpose in one’s life and the inevitability of change. The committee is extremely grateful to all those who helped make the workshop a success, as well as the participants for their attention and attendance!
