Capstone Sa

What?

 

On January 27, 2014, in celebration of Black History Month, Director Spike Lee visited Virginia Tech as part of an event presented by the Black Student Alliance. The director of “Do the Right Thing” and “When the Levees Broke” has been my long-time favorite since I became exposed to his work as part of LDRS 1016 in the spring of my freshman year and this event was definitely one of the experiences I had during my undergraduate studies at Virginia Tech that really helped shaping the leader and citizen I am today.

 

The evening with Spike Lee included a very relaxed talk with the director who spoke about his struggles as a black student in a historically black university and the difficulties he faced in his path towards becoming a renowned director. Furthermore, Mr. Lee took questions from the audience which allowed for a great sharing of experiences between a wise black men and likely wise minority college students.

 

So What?

 

Among the many things director Spike Lee spoke about, the struggles of an African American student and that of his family to support him through his education was definitely important for me to hear since as a leader, education as means of social change is my biggest passion. The story of director Spike Lee motivated me to one day return to the many communities which I have called home and to give back in whichever ways I can as well as it inspired me to not give up on my dreams because of social stigmas and the difficulties of being a minority student.

 

Furthermore, as a leader, having the opportunity of listening to director Spike Lee was truly inspirational as he is a leader himself. During the talk Mr. Lee displayed not only the direction, goal, and vision of a leader but he also stressed the transformative power of education especially amongst minorities and that helped me further shape my biggest passion as a leader.

 

Now What?

 

Now I am an even bigger fan of director Spike Lee! Furthermore, this event allowed me to become inspired to continue my journey of self-discovery as a leader and professional such that one day I am able to work for the betterment of the community. Moreover, having the experience of listening to such a strong voice in the black community reinforced my belief that social equality is not only possible but it is a right and for that I want to dedicate my work as a leader.

 

Finally, after listening to director Spike Lee I was able to recognize the importance of being involved and present in issues that afflict your community, which is really a leader’s main job. I learned that night that leaders are the real directors of the movie called life, leaders have the ability of changing the faith of entire communities and that is the real reason why this event helped shaping my leadership beliefs, passion, and philosophy.