Leadership

We have a new Director!!

Cara Hollingsworth is in the process of moving to Alaska with her husband and 2 labs. Cara is originally from Wyoming and will be joining us after many years of experience working in Student Activities.

Cara will officially be in the office August 25.
Please stop by and introduce yourself!

More information about Cara coming soon!

Michelle grew up in Seattle and spent (almost) every summer in beautiful Fairbanks.  A job at the Wood Center and a love of this fabulous place and its eclectic mix of people brought Michelle to Fairbanks permanently in 2002.  Michelle was sad to leave her WC family in 2004, as she went on to a position with the Greater Fairbanks Chamber of Commerce.  In 2005 Michelle was asked to join the team at a local financial institution, where she most recently worked as a Branch Manager until her return to classes at UAF.  Michelle has happily come "home" to the WC while she works on her degree and her 63 year old house.

Meredith Cameron joined the great UAF Leadership Program in the fall of 2007 and she loves it! Growing up in Alaska has given her a sense of independence and appreciation for diversity. Working in the Leadership Program has given her a new boost for discovering her own leadership potential as well as helping others find theirs. Meredith’s first experience with the UAF Leadership Program was at the fall 2005 Leadership Conference. From then on she began to see the never-ending opportunities this program had to offer. Meredith hopes to spend her time in the Leadership Program building new leadership events and inspiring others to go above and beyond.

To keep up her ability to run from event to event, Meredith enjoys running and traveling to far off lands. As an undergraduate political science major at UAF she is often involved in numerous activities such as ASUAF and UAF Model UN Alliance. Eventually she hopes to graduate and spend some time working abroad for the State Department.

Now, this is a story all about how
My life got flipped-turned upside down
And I liked to take a minute
Just sit right there
I'll tell you all how I became Student Org. Assistant here

In North-East Fairbanks born and raised
On the ski-hill was where I spent most of my days
Chillin' out maxin' relaxin' all cool
And all involved in Red Cross, honors all part of the school
When a couple of girls
Who were up to some good
Started asking me to join their neighborhood
I got in one little interview and they started to share
They said 'Now your responsible for the Student Org. Fair'

Later that month

I whistled for a ride and when the van came near
The license plate said UAF and it had a Nanook in the mirror
If anything I can say this van was uncool
But I thought 'Now forget it' - 'Yo homes to Taku'

I walked up to the Wood Center about 7 or 8
And I yelled to my friends 'Yo homes smell ya later'
I looked at my kingdom
I was finally there
To sit in my seat in the Leadership lair

Heather Sinclair is Alaska-grown and enjoys walking her dogs, hiking, and having a hot cup of tea. She is currently pursuing a degree in natural resource management at UAF.

She joined the Leadership Program in fall 2007 where she served as a Leadership Program Mentor. She has just returned from spending a semester abroad at the University of Tromsų, Norway, enjoying the Norwegian fjords, mountains, reindeer and more tea.

This fall Heather has returned to UAF and the Leadership Program to work as the Volunteer Program Assistant. She is very excited about being a part of the Leadership Program team and is looking forward to the semester’s upcoming events.

Kassi began working for the Leadership Program as the Volunteer Mentor in the fall of 2007. Kassi has always appreciated what others have done and given her, therefore, has always wanted to give back to others through volunteer work.   This year Kassi looks forward to planning and leading the third annual Alternative Spring Break trip in March of 2008 while learning and growing as a leader.   Outside of the office she is an active member in the coed National Service Fraternity Alpha Phi Omega and currently pursuing a degree in Nursing.   When Kassi isn’t volunteering she can often be found coaching, refereeing or playing volleyball.

Kari was born and raised in North Pole, Alaska . In high school she was an exchange student to Koeln, Germany with Rotary Youth Exchange. Since this experience she has been involved with the rotary clubs of Fairbanks and decided to start up the Aurora Borealis Rotaract Club with a handful of other young adults on Sept 11, 2001. Her passion for community service and helping others discover their potential was started with Rotaract.   After her freshman year of college Kari took off on an amazing 2 year adventure with AmeriCorps. Through City Year and Habitat for Humanity the experience she gained has helped expand her horizons.

After returning to Fairbanks she eventually joined the Leadership Program as the Volunteer Program Assistant in fall 2006. For the past 2 years Kari has been one of the team leaders on the Alternative Break trips to New Orleans and Washington, D.C.

This spring Kari will graduate with an Associates in Construction Management and a Bachelors in Sociology. Her long term plan is to eventually join the PeaceCorps and someday go into non-profit management.