Tuesday 16 October 2018 1:39pm
Maddi Ingham, one of 21 students to receive a University of Otago Student Leadership Award (UOSLA) last week. Photos: Sharron Bennett.
When asked to describe how taking part in Otago’s Student Leadership Award has enhanced her life, fifth-year student Maddi Ingham turned to her “guilty habit” – movies and TV.
The Law and Commerce student from Christchurch was one of 21 students to receive a University of Otago Student Leadership Award (UOSLA) at a ceremony at St Margaret’s College last week, and gave a speech about the experience.
While not a formal qualification, the two-year extra-curricular course, which was officially launched in 2014, gives students opportunities to develop leadership skills and attributes that would enhance personal growth and employability, as well as make a positive contribution to society.
"Choose something you love. Choose something that makes a difference to our community. And choose the right people to support you in your goals."
Students are paired with a University staff member mentor, who supports them through their leadership journey – as they volunteer for various charities and causes.
Maddi, whose mentor was Victoria McEniery from the International Office, told the audience that the first lesson she learned, was that when you take on a role, you must commit.
“This is summed up most eloquently by Yoda, in Star Wars, when he said ‘do, or do not. There is no try’,” she said.
“Similarly, there is nothing worse than assigning tasks to a team member who says they will ‘try’ to get it done. It doesn’t instil a lot of confidence. However with a dedicated leader, and a dedicated team, anything can be achieved.”
Alongside her studies, Maddi took on three voluntary roles to earn the Leadership award: volunteering for the Innocence Project NZ, coordinating the fundraising for Te Whare Pounamu, the Dunedin Women's Refuge, and tutoring accounting at the University.
Her Te Whare Pounamu role was her largest, and under her leadership a group of 100 students raised more than $43,000 – almost double the amount of money normally raised.
Turning again to TV, she told her the audience that the most important lesson she has learned was to focus on the urgent things.
“When taking on large roles, there are always going to be a million things that need to be done. But, as Cady in Mean Girls discovered, ‘all you can do in life is try and solve the problem in front of you’. I am a huge fan of a good to do list, and organising tasks by urgency is a fool-proof way to ensure you never miss a deadline.”
"This year's recipients contributed their time and energy to hugely diverse community activities, ranging from sitting on a national committee for youth refugee welfare ... to inspiring other young leaders."
A last quote she used was from Harry Potter’s Professor Albus Dumbledore.
“If you believe in your cause, or the goals you have set, then anything is possible. I couldn’t do a movie quote speech without including Dumbledore, who said it best when he said that ‘it is not our abilities that show what we truly are. It is our choices’. Choose something you love. Choose something that makes a difference to our community. And choose the right people to support you in your goals.”
University Volunteer Centre Coordinator Sze-En Watts says the Award ceremony is a wonderful way to celebrate the achievements of the students who complete this programme.
Since its inception, collectively, students of the Award have recorded almost 19,800 hours of service activities that have contributed both to their leadership development and positive community impact.
“This year's recipients contributed their time and energy to hugely diverse community activities, ranging from sitting on a national committee for youth refugee welfare, judging science fairs, running student cultural associations, talking to rural students about tertiary education and inspiring other young leaders.”
The 2018 Award recipients were: Aaspreet Boparai, Agnes Chu, Aliyah Ali, Anne Chiang, Annie Chen, Chris Wang, David Wang, Dhruv Raman, Ella Walsh, Emilie Butterfield, Emily Seddon, Gianna Menzies, Lauren Holloway, Maddi Ingham, Malcolm Jones, Matthew Smith, Pyo Chan, Thumb Yang, Tia Yu, Wenjing Li and Xavier Parackal.
Mrs Watts says she is enormously proud of them all.
If you would like to become a staff mentor to a student in the Award programme, please contact ola@otago.ac.nz
The 2018 recipients of University of Otago Student Leadership Awards. Back row, from left: Tia Yu, Matthew Smith, Malcolm Jones, Vice-Chancellor Professor Harlene Hayne, Sze-En Watts, Annie Chen and Wenjing Li. Middle row, from left: Aliyah Ali, Gianna Menzies, Lauren Holloway, Aaspreet Boparai, Xavier Parackal, Ella Walsh and Emily Seddon. Front row, from left: Maddi Ingham, Dhruv Raman, Chris Wang and Thumb Yang. Absent: Anne Chiang, Emilie Butterfield and Agnes Chu.