Running head: LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY 1

Leadership Philosophy

Fernando Villalpando

August 12, 2017

California State University, San Bernardino

EDUC 702
LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY 2

Leadership Philosophy

I believe my views and understanding on leadership have changed throughout time,

which has also affected the way I perceive leaders today. These changes have made me reflect

back to evaluate if those who I believed were true leaders or not. Leadership goes beyond

leading a group of people or an organization. After years of working with multiple leaders and

mentors, I can say that leadership is not only be being the leader in different possible situations,

but it also should represent understanding those who are being led. It goes beyond being the

person with all the answers and who will make all the decisions, but it should also be a person

who listens and learns from others, takes that into consideration, and makes decision based on

not only what is best for her or him, but what is best for all parties involved. A leader should be

more than just an expert in a field, but she or he should also be able to be a good listener, be

empathetic, have a sense of working as a community, not afraid of demonstrating their human

side, and not be afraid to speak up for others and for what is good. Being ethical is a key

characteristic for leadership. There are many people who start with the best intentions and goals,

and as they move up in hierarchy, they tend to forget their ethical obligations for personal gain

and empowerment. This could be one of the biggest challenges for those who reach leadership

positions in a hierarchy.

On the other hand, there are many leaders who do not have a recognizable position and

their name is in golden letters, but definitely possess the qualities that a leader should

have. There are those who work tirelessly without any spotlights or the need of

recognition. They work hard, and dedicate their lives with true conviction to a cause or goal they

truly believe in and has a personal attachment to them. These leaders can be found dedicating

their spare time helping their communities, helping the less fortunate, or possibly being mentors
LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY 3

for others. They also work in conjunction with others, and know the power of collaboration for a

common goal. Are they any different from the traditional leaders? I believe the biggest

different is a title and salary, other than that, both are similar even though they might seem

different. Both provide a service to others who might need support or guidance. Both have the

ability to work with others for the benefit of those being served. Both have a mission to

accomplish and goals to achieve. Both serve as mentors to future leaders in their field.

Personally, I have grown, and continue to grow as a leader. I have had the opportunity

with multiple leaders of different with different leadership styles from which I have gain

knowledge on being a leader (both good and bad). My current supervisor is an example of a

leader who, in my view, operates from an Applied Critical Leadership framework (Santamara &

Santamara, 2012), and who lives and breathes her goals and dedication for students. She is a

champion for her students and her staff. She recognizes that there are inequities at our

university, and fights to ensure that our students are getting a fair treatment. She is not afraid to

be the unpopular supervisor among other supervisors and the universitys administration. She

empowers us to transcend our interests for good of the group and those we serve, as well as

giving all us a role within our program so we all become experts within an area (Santamara &

Santamara, 2012). I have also work with other leaders who dedicate their off time to a cause or

organizations that have a serious need and share a personal connection to the leader. I can think

of one who even though she does not have a title of leadership at her work of employment, she

dedicates her own time to help and bring people together to help undocumented people, deported

U.S. Veterans, collect clothing and other hygiene items for the thousands of Haitian refugees in

Tijuana, Mexico attempting to gain asylum in the United States unsuccessfully. She dedicates

her weekends to drive to the border to help work on restoring an old building and turn in into a
LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY 4

shelter for deported immigrants. Her work has inspired me to do more than what I do, and that if

Im truly passionate about my mission as a leader, there is not 8am to 5pm schedule for my

work. These leaders have helped me shape my attributes as a leader who wants to create an

impact as important as they do.

Due to what I have learned from these two leaders, and others that Ive worked with or

been able to witness their work, I have gradually change my perspective and skills as a leader. I

that those I work with and serve, need me to lead by example, and that my work and title are

more important and impactful than just a work schedule. My mission to help create access to

college for underrepresented populations, provide resources and support to all my students, guide

them and their families to navigate the higher education arena, or be a light of hope to our

undocumented student population, is far more important than my personal needs or my work

shift. A true leader does not have a schedule and lives her/his mission and advocacy at all

times.

Thinking about who I am as a leader and how my leadership has changed, I need to think

of my values, assumptions, motivations, and beliefs. I was raised with strong values of family,

helping others, and taking advantage of the education that many others in my family were not

able to get or continue. I grew up knowing that no matter our poor conditions, there was always

a way to continue moving forward with hard work and not giving up on

ourselves. Unfortunately, many in my family were not able to continue on to accomplish their

goals, but I was fortunate to do it, and continue doing it. My grandmother used to tell me, el

que seamos pobres no significa que seamos sucios o mal educados, which translates to the fact

that we are poor does not mean that we are dirty people or uneducated. These are words that I

cherish and follow me everywhere, among many other phrases from her life experiences. From
LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY 5

her and my mother I have learned so much in terms of recognizing others, the value of hard

labor, the need to help others and not judge them. These women in my life have been a true

pillar of knowledge and social and cultural capital that I did not know I had.

I also have to constantly have to check myself, my values, motivations and any

assumptions I have. Like many other first generation students, when I earned my bachelors

degree and received my first job offer, I was ecstatic. I had a sense of accomplishment for my

hard work that I felt I was on highest peak. I felt that I deserved my new job that brought a good

salary with the best income that I have ever had. I felt that I deserved to treat myself and my

family, that I deserved a brand new SUV, and that I could give me the luxury that I never

had. Unfortunately, that led to a series of bad financial, personal and professional decisions that

led to me falling from that highest peak that I was in. I had forgotten the values and motivation

for my initial success, and the lessons from my family. I had assumed that I deserved so much

because of my hard work, that I took the wrong turn in the fork of life. After I almost lost

everything, including my job, I had to check myself and reevaluate my values and motivations. I

had to self-reflect on why did I ended up still failing after reaching the top. It took me years to

recuperate from my biggest fall and change the way I saw my true mission and conviction in

life. During this time, I was just cruising in life without a true purpose in life, just surviving

every day and letting each day pass me by. This lesson has been the most important piece of

knowledge that I have gained in life. I need to stay true to my values and do not let the shiny

new car, and the newest adventure take me to the wrong road. Most importantly, it led me to

find my most important goal in life, to be a mentor and a role model for other who like me, could

fall into the wrong road after reaching the top.

LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY 6

Unknowingly, today I apply many of the principles of transformational leadership in my

leadership style, as well at the practices of cultural pedagogy (Santamara & Santamara,

2012). Also, without knowing, many of the characteristics of both are part of the values and

beliefs that I learned growing up from my family. I have also learned on my own that race in

this country matters and that the stories of people matter as well. The lens of Critical Race

Theory has been part of my own values without knowing a name for it. I also learned this from

my family. Not until a few years ago, I did not know that my mother had walked with fellow

grape pickers on marches for social justice and change. She walked with Csar Chvez for the

fair treatments of farmworkers. Even though not vocal and highly activist, my other did her part

in the movement for social justice. After learning about this, I knew I had to do more. I have

always felt that my family looked up to me for success and getting a career, but now I also know

that I have never done anything like my mother did. Her quiet leadership has been more

impactful than what I have done.

I now know that as Chvez (2009) mentioned, privilege of any kind can act as a learning

disability (p. 43). This has been one of the most eye opening learning experiences in my

life. The fall that I suffered after I had gained some privilege, blinded me on continue learning

and taking others into consideration. I know now that my job is more than just a job and a shift

of my day, and that I must live and breathe my mission every day. I know that I can still enjoy

some of the pleasures in life, but need to regulate and check myself not to get lost in them. I

truly try to be a resource for my students, community, and a role model. I do not mind sharing

my story and success, failure, and revival to those around me, especially to those who are in their

way to getting accomplishing their goal of their first degree. This has made my job much more

emotional than before. I used to not know any emotion on every aspect of my life. I knew that I
LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY 7

had to change that in order to feel free and be able to accomplish my goals. After reading

Gonzlez & Rincones (2013), I was able to see how important our emotions are when it comes to

what we do at work, and in our mission. More than ever, I feel that what I do is

emotional. When I work with students, when I express my values, and when I strive to help

those are in need, I use my emotions. I have had to learn how to manage my emotions when

needed because after many years of suppressing them, I feel like I am going to explode if I do

not. This is both at work and my personal life.

I have grown as an individual, a professional, and a leader. I have gained an immense

amount of knowledge that has helped me move forward and get back on my feet to be able to

help others. I have surrounded myself with other who understand this struggle and who are

supportive. I know that I still have to find a way to make more of an impact. I feel that this is

my main area of improvement; finding my voice to create more of an impact. Since what I do

now is so much more emotional and meaningful that before, as I speak and express opinions and

important matters, I feel like I cannot control my emotions. This leads to me suppressing them

again and staying quiet because I feel like I am going to explode. I need to be able to not be

fearful of letting go of my emotions, find my voice, and standing up higher for the injustices that

I see around me in order for my leadership to be much more impactful.

LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY 8

Reference

Chavez, A. F. (2009). Leading in the borderlands: Negotiating ethnic patriarchy for the benefit of

students. NASPA Journal About Women in Higher Education, 2(1), 39-65.

Gonzales, L. D., & Rincones, R. (2013). Using participatory action research and photo methods

to explore higher education administration as an emotional endeavor. The Qualitative

Report, 18(32), 1.

Santamara, L. J., & Santamara, A. P. (2012). Applied critical leadership in education: Choosing

change. New York, NY: Routledge.