My work for the Fellows Program has afforded me a unique view “behind the curtain,” if you will. Rarely does one have the opportunity to see the architectural and operational bedrocks of a developing association. Those a part of the design and implementation process cultivate—unbeknownst to them—a familial relationship not only with the design, but with each other. It is a novel and enlightening experience—a sensation that electrifies one’s awareness of the value of culture and community.
When I began my term as President, I did not foresee how tremendously impactful the Fellows Program and the people involved would be on my life. I wanted to do great good by giving back to an organization that selflessly gives so much to advance the intellectual and professional capital of the leaders of the future, more pointedly; us. I endeavored fiercely to make the Fellows Program a vehicle for realizing Claes Nobel’s dream of building a cadre of exceptional leaders ready to take on the challenges that plague our world. By maintaining our connections as a global family, we can pool our unique talents together to be the global change agents that Mr. Nobel envisioned.
I cared so much about making that vision a reality that I began to feel weighed down by the immense gravity of the task. Then, it dawned on me; I was not in this alone. My fellow board members and NSHSS staff shared in this vision. From that epiphany, I gathered the importance of reaching out. With a family like NSHSS, reaching out is not only encouraged, it is expected. As a community of scholars, we are working to positively change the world and that change is going to take all of us. To that end, my advice is to reach out. The Fellows Program is a beacon; a reminder that no matter where we reside—we are a family and you will always have support.
By Jordan Biggers, NSHSS member, President of the NSHSS Fellows Program, and Spring Hill College Class of 2012 graduate