St. Andrews’ most inspiring leaders: Meet the finalists for 2017
They’re the Moses to your Flock
Some are born great, some achieve greatness and some go out of their way to have greatness thrust upon them.
We’ve scoured St. Andrews to find the people who, not fulfilled by mere lectures and Wednesday nights at Sinners, have pushed themselves further to become something more.
They’ve campaigned for equality, raised money for charity and protected students’ rights.
You’ve probably already heard of them, or maybe they’ve influenced your life without you knowing it. Either way, you’re going to want to see who’s made the list.
Here are your most inspiring leaders of 2017.
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Andrew Kalinin, Head of Charity
3rd Year, International Relations and Management
What made you interested in becoming Head of Charity at St. Andrews?
As Head of Charity I oversee St. Andrews Charity Fashion Show and St. Andrews Charity Polo Tournament. Both of these events are first and foremost charitable events so all the money that we raise goes towards supporting incredible causes.
For me, that is one of the most interesting and attractive elements of my work – to be able to know that your work will result in positively affecting someone’s life.
What does being a leader mean to you?
Being a leader means leading by example. It means trying to be the best version of yourself you can possibly be and trying to be a positive influence on the people and causes you engage with.
It’s about trying to see the big picture and being able to think ten steps ahead of everyone else.
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What makes a good leader?
I’m convinced that good leaders are not born, they’re made. To become a good leader one needs to practice and use every opportunity he or she is presented with.
Secondly, a good leader should be able to inspire people, to unite them, to motivate them.
Finally, a good leader should be capable of dealing with failures. We can’t always succeed from the first attempt but this should not discourage a good leader. Instead it should inform and inspire a good leader to try harder and do better.
What drives you?
That might sound overly naive and romantic but I’m driven by the belief that any individual can change the world – the question is whether for better or worse.
I’m really passionate about changing the world for the better in whatever way and form that might be. Nowadays, we are more connected than ever and with the help of technology and smart leadership I believe we can create a new age of global prosperity.
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Sigrid Jørgensen, Chair of St. Andrews Student Association
Third Year, Social Anthropology and Psychology
What made you interested in becoming the Chair of St. Andrews Student Association?
I’ve always been a natural leader so it felt like the perfect position for me. The girl who had the role before me highly recommended I run for the position and the more I looked into it the more I loved the sound of it.
It’s a great way for me to give back to an association that’s been really important to me from day one, and the high speed, high pressure aspects of it pushes me to always be on my toes.
What does being a leader mean to you?
It means you inspire and you lead by example. I always push myself to go above and beyond my duty because I want to show I can do as much as I can for the student experience.
It also means listening to a trusted team around you, making sure everyone’s ideas are heard and respected and finding a way to make sure everyone’s ideas are integrated.
What makes a good leader?
Being firm in your stance. You need to know what you’re looking for and defend why you think that.
What kind of leader are you?
It depends on the situation. If I know I’m taking on a large project and won’t be able to give it the attention it needs I will delegate to people who I know will do the job and get the same end results that I would be happy with. If it’s a program I’m really passionate about then I usually make it my top priority and put all my energy into that.
What are you passionate about?
I’m driven by my passion to make the world a more supportive and accepting place and give back to the people and communities that have been there for me and opened so many doors for me.
Do you have the qualities of a good leader?
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Kristen Tsubota, Charities Officer
Fourth Year, International Relations and Management
What made you interested in becoming Charities Officer?
I was part of RAG week in my second year and last year I was the RAG week co-ordinator where we raised over £20,00 for charities. It was the second biggest RAG week in history with over 50 events and from there I decided to run for the Charities Officer position.
There are so many different branches of charity work which makes this role so interesting. One of my favourite things is how many avenues there are to get involved, which makes me love it and want to continue to be a part of it.
What does being a leader mean to you?
For me a leader is someone who is able to not only lead by example but also observe what is best for the society and organisation they’re working for. They should be able to adapt to a situation to make sure everyone is able to reach their full potential.
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What makes a good leader?
Someone who’s able listen to everyone without bias and see both sides of the situation. This makes it easier to mediate trickier dilemmas and not burn bridges. Every leader’s going to have a problem arise at some point but if they’re able to come out of that without ruining any relationships it makes them stronger in the long run.
What are you passionate about?
I always have a fire in my belly which is the reason I’m involved in so many different things.
I’ve grown up being involved with hundreds of activities and since then I always want to get involved and see what I can do to help make things better. I love seeing successes out of the end of it and the idea of always improving what I’ve already done gets me excited about the future.
Do you love being challenged?
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Julian Valladares Urruela, Vice President of the Kate Kennedy Club
Fourth Year, International Relations
What made you want to be the Vice President of the Kate Kennedy Club?
The club raises money for local charities and organises some of the traditional events in St. Andrews.
I became Vice-President because I enjoy talking to people and I like the leadership aspect of it. I’m a people person and although this position requires planning and logistics, it’s mostly about spending time with people and talking about how to move forward with the club.
What does being a leader mean to you?
I actually took a leadership module last year that was entirely focused on the definition of a leader. For me it’s not the book definition, it’s about having empathy and being able to really understand others in order to move forward with your plans with the support of others.
As you succeed you should make sure the other members of your team succeed as well, so it’s also about not being selfish.
What are you passionate about?
My country has a big influence on what I do and I have a strong belief in human beings. I’m Guatemalan and I’ve seen what people who have zero opportunities are capable of – the relentless pursuit of making themselves better each day with what they have.
How have you learnt to lead?
I’m the fifth kid in a family of five kids and it’s the influence of my five siblings that’s taught me how to lead. I’ve been lucky enough to learn from their mistakes and successes and sort of have five different parents. Being the youngest sibling meant I had to develop a strong voice from a young age if I wanted to be heard.
Where do you see yourself in five years?
I want to keep growing professionally and academically, having as many valuable experiences as possible and aspiring to become a better person.
Matthew Mcconaughey said in his Oscar speech, “someone asked me who my hero was and I said it’s me in ten years.” I fully agree with this as it means I want to improve and although I’ll never be that person I’ll always have the motivation to be.
Do you have big plans for the future?
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Jo Boon, President of FemSoc
Fourth Year, International Relations and Comparative Literature
What made you interested in becoming President of FemSoc?
Before I came to university I already identified as a feminist so joining the feminist society was an obvious one for me. I grew up in Manchester which leans to the left politically and has a rich feminist history so I grew up surrounded by feminism but also very aware that there was still a lot to do.
What does being a leader mean to you?
For me it’s being a supportive role for feminists in St. Andrews, someone you can bring ideas to, someone who can support different things, and that extends to putting on events and to informal counselling work.
For example, if someone’s experienced sexual violence they may not want to report it or talk to the university about it but they know who I am and they know they can come and talk to me.
The reason we say co-ordinator not president is to create the idea that everything we do is completely democratic because I’m never superior to anyone else on the committee, I’m just there to facilitate and co-ordinate as a point of contact.
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What drives you?
Manchester is a very political place, left wing and very artistic and I didn’t realise how much the place I grew up in shaped me until I left it. My parents are also very supportive and we have a great relationship.
They put a lot of pressure on themselves and campaign a lot and although they’ve never enforced it on me I grew up with it being the norm. If there’s a cause I really care about it seems normal to try and do something about it.
Where do you see yourself in five years?
Dream wise I’d love to take Label, a paper and society I set up two years ago and turn it into something bigger. I’d love to become editor of Label as a print magazine, but I’m also applying for jobs that will pay the rent.