Over the course of this summer, we have had many discussions on what it means to be a leader. I have worked with and under many different types of leaders and I have learned that where every leader has different methods for leading/directing, all of them possess certain traits and skills that allow them to hone their group together to work towards a goal.

One leader at CND that I would like to reflect on is my supervisor, Ms. Susie Shipley-Norwood. Ms. Susie has been put in charge of running the summer day camp this year and this is her first year working at CND as a full-time staff member (she has worked as a collaborator in the past). As I followed Ms. Susie around this summer, I witnessed her style of leading and gained a lot of insights on how one can manage a group of 200 people.

Ms. Susie made it clear from the beginning of the summer that she did not want to “step on any toes” when it comes to running the Summer Day Camp, something CND has put on for many years. She used this summer as a way to observe how things are done at CND so that she may reflect and implement ways for improvement for the coming years. I loved the way she went about her relationships with each child, staying strict and firm to the rules but keeping a warm heart and open arms for any time a child needed it.

On Monday of this week, we were taking a field trip as a camp to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. As I was doing my regular morning tasks at the elementary school, preparing to leave, I noticed Ms. Michelle and Mr. Donovan sitting with a little boy, L, who was crying really hard as Mr. Donovan was bandaging his foot. Turns out, L had seriously cut his foot the previous day while riding his bike with cousins. The cut, located in between this poor boy’s toes, was still open and very irritated. I let L squeeze my hand as Mr. Donovan wrapped his toes with gauze and tape. We were all concerned that he was not able to go to the zoo due to his injury.

After his foot was treated, L put on his shoes and asked to go get a drink. When he was on his way over to the water fountain, he turned around to us and said “look! I can walk! I can go!” Mr. Donovan, Ms. Michelle, and I all wanted him to be able to go but we didn’t want to risk him getting more hurt. We felt terrible for him. So we called Ms. Susie and asked what she thought. Where she felt sorry for him as well, she knew that he would not be able to go because it was too much of a liability for CND. When Mr. Donovan got off the phone with Ms. Susie, he called her “the voice of reason” and I agree with that 100%. All of us cared deeply for this boy and just wanted him to be able to have fun with us at the zoo.

Ms. Susie is a leader because she can keep her cool in tough situations. Her training as a social worker definitely helps her to keep a level head in crisis situations and she does not let her feelings fog her judgement at work. That is why I admire her as a leader and look forward to working under her in the future.