PAULA MCCALL
THE CITY COLLEGE OF NEW YORK
By Paula McCall, Chapter Senator, NSBE City College of New York Chapter
Growing up, one is always told to “be a leader and not a follower.” But what does it truly mean to be a leader? For most, it is to be able to think for one’s self and sway other people to believe what you say as law. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Leadership, said Marian Anderson, the famous African-American singer and human rights icon, “Should be born out of the needs of those who would be affected by it.” We elect leaders to represent our collective thoughts and to express our voice in the halls of power.
Just last weekend, I was given the opportunity to see and experience leadership by sitting in on a meeting of NSBE’s National Executive Board. The NEB, our elected national representatives, is a perfect example of leadership making decisions for the good of the people. On every decision that came before the board, each leader made sure to voice his or her opinions. Each opinion expressed was from the point of view of the parts of the Society that the board member represented. Budget assumptions, academic and retention program improvements, even details about improving the finer areas of operation were heavily debated. Discussions about retention were livelier than others: clear evidence that the leadership cares about the academic success of the members.
For me, the most resonant part of this experience was the interaction with my national counterparts. As a chapter leader, I see that transparency is the best way to keep members engaged, since members tend to associate the leader’s character with the roles of his or her position. I always find it funny how the more inexperienced members in my chapter look at the Chapter Executive Board as “NSBE-bots.” Until they get to know us a little more, they think that all we do is wear NSBE shirts and talk about engineering topics. Now, that’s not to say I think the NEB members are mindless drones. I’ve found that face-to-face interaction helps to clear the air around high-level leaders. So now, when I speak about the national secretary, for instance, I know her name and can say something about her character as well as her duties. This, I believe, is a great influence: the idea that she not only looks like me but thinks like me as well makes her more approachable the next time we meet. And as an added benefit, the conversation won’t linger around her duties as national secretary.
This experience, seeing the NEB up close, has further influenced me to step up into national leadership and do my part to fulfill our mission.