Blog Archives - HOBY Kansas

HOBY Hugs!

6/17/2012

As the 2012 Kansas HOBY Seminar comes to a close today, the ambassadors attended a session called "Where Do We Go From Here" in which they discussed how to stay pumped up as they go back to their communities and spread what they have learned, ways to give back to those communities, and opportunities for future involvement in HOBY on a state and world level.

HOBY ambassadors, as you head home, don't forget to keep the HOBY spirit alive! Join the HOBY Kansas 2012 Facebook page and keep in touch with your fellow HOBY Alumni. Use this as a resource to encourage each other and continue that outstanding PMA.

On behalf of all the staff here at HOBY Kansas, we are all so proud and inspired by the leaders we have seen these past four days. We cannot wait to see what the future has in store for you and the positive impacts we all know that each of you will make in this world.

Day 3 - Ambassador's Seminar and Night Activities

6/16/2012

The ambassadors lined up for a large group photo before preparing for a debate during ambassador's seminar. This debate consists of an ambassador from each group who is selected to debate a topic. The topic was on high schools being strictly academic versus high schools having extra curricular activities.

For the rest of the night, the ambassadors will be attending a dance and/or movie night. Afterwards, Michael Chavez will tell the story of the "warm fuzzies," which are compliments that one can give to another. To finish off the night, the ambassadors will gather to reflect their time here at HOBY.

Day 3 - Phase 3 Continued

6/16/2012

For part of Phase 3, the ambassadors listened to a panel on energy resources. There were speakers on behalf of three different forms of energy: coal energy, oil and natural gas energy, and renewable energy. The ambassadors asked questions that had the panelists explain more about alternative energy, the future of energy businesses with advances in technology, and cutting back on resources.

After lunch, Ray Boese gave a presentation that focused on the point that everyone is created equal and that no one is better than the person they are sitting next to. His session is called "Unseen Kids." He said that there are "unseen kids" in every school, whether the students realize it or not. Ray stressed to always take the time to care about others because you'll never know when a smile could mean the most to someone and make their day.

Day 3 - Phase 3

6/16/2012

We started off day 3 with a career breakfast sponsored by Phillips 66 where the ambassadors had the opportunity to speak with and ask questions to those with jobs in varying career fields. Some of those fields included human resources, education, veterinary sciences, politics and optometry. The ambassadors were encouraged to move among the different careers and explore the various opportunities that were presented by each professional.

Sarah Koehn introduced Phase 3 "Leadership for Society." She stressed that "You can be big, you can be small, but you must be right now." In other words, big or small, you have to act now because you only have a finite number of days to make a difference whether it be in a small organization, your high school, your community, or on a larger scale.

Day 2 - Closing Phase 2

6/15/2012

After dinner, we made our way to the Student Union and heard Nick Zimmerman speak about "How to Start a Movement." He talked about not only the importance of being a leader, but the importance of being a follower, because the best leader is the best follower.
Then it was time for the HOBY "Olympics" which was held in the Quad. This was the final activity for the Group Leadership Phase where ambassadors participated in a number of group tasks that caused them to step out of their comfort zone and work together to push themselves to do the best that they could. This was a great opportunity to learn team building exercises. The stations included things such as moving a cotton ball around a circle with using only a straw as well as dropping a penny that is laying on the side of their nose into a cup without using their hands. The HOBY "Olympics" was filled with an abundance of loud cheering, PMA, and teamwork that got everyone pumped up and ready for day 3!

Day 2 - Phase 2 Continued

6/15/2012

After lunch, we went back to the Leadership Studies building for the education panel. The panelists were educators and administrators that answered questions from the ambassadors regarding the different types of education systems that they represented and their opinions on various aspects of their respected education system.

Then we were off to the Leadership Studies building once again for the Leadership for Service Project, which was writing letters for soldiers who have come home from overseas with no family prepared to meet them or have supplies ready for their return. A USO volunteer explained that soldiers with families have the basic supplies needed for them to return home, but these soldiers don't necessarily have that, which is why this program was adopted in 2009. She also introduced some other volunteer programs that the USO has available for everyone, even high schoolers.

Day 2 - Phase 2

6/15/2012

We're alive, awake, alert, and enthusiastic for day 2 of Kansas HOBY. We started off the day with a hot breakfast in the Kramer Dining Center and made our way to Bluemont Hall for the Phase 2 introduction lead by Sarah Koehn. Phase 2 is group leadership. She spoke on the difference between groups and teams. A group consists of people who are in an elevator. A team includes those same people, but the elevator has stopped working. That group of people in the elevator now have to work together as a team by communicating, problem solving, and taking riskstogether. You can't get out of the elevator, or work through other problems, by yourself. You need those other people that bring their specialties and personalities to the team to be able to succeed.

We moved to Ahearn Gym for the ambassadors to participate in an activity called "The Value of Trade in the World Today." This activity split the ambassadors into buying and selling groups. Each of them "traded" a commodity under different market conditions to explore how regulation and competition affect the free market.

Day 1 - Identifying Our Leadership Styles

6/14/2012

As the evening continued, so did the excellent PMA! The ambassadors headed towards the Phase 1 Activity, presented by Kara Belew. This activity started with every ambassador taking a personality test to determine their "true color." The four colors (orange, green, blue, and gold) each had different qualities. Being an Orange consists of being active, outgoing, and being a problem solver or negotiator. Greens are said to "live in their heads" by always thinking, and being very precise. Blues are usually classified as having a large heart, emotional, care takers, relatable, and wishes to see harmony between people. Having order, being traditional, and always making lists and planning ahead are characteristics of a Gold. Keep in mind that these definitions are on the extreme ends of the spectrum, but most people will fall in between a mixture of colors.

Day 1 - Phase 1

6/14/2012

Sarah Koehn introduced Phase 1: Personal Leadership, the first of three phases, and left behind a couple of points for the ambassadors to ponder. "A leader leads by example whether they intend to or not," is the first thought she left them with. Everything you do, any where you go, and everybody that you meet will be affected by you and your leadership. She also expressed there is good in the bad, and bad in the good. She related this to the image of a ying yang, a little bit of white in the black and a little bit of black in the white. To apply this concept, Sarah had the ambassadors write down their good qualities, then what bad things might come out of it, and their bad qualities, and the good things that might come out of it.

Going along with Phase 1 was our first panel covering entrepreneurship. Each phase contains a panel, and each panel consists of approximately three parties. In this case, the panel included entrepreneurs that have varying experiences with starting and running their own businesses. The panelists were Dave Dreiling with GTM Sportswear, Anne and Mike Hill with HRC Apartments and Townhomes, and Erica Short with Anecdotally Yours. The panelists introduced themselves and told a little about their company before the ambassadors were encouraged to ask them questions. The ambassadors asked interesting questions about anything from advertising through social networking, to the difficulties of starting a business, to the effects on their family lives.

Day 1 - Opening Ceremonies

6/14/2012

Opening Ceremonies ended with a keynote address by Joe Coles who introduced the call to leadership to the ambassadors. He explained PRICE, Perseverance, Responsibility, Intensity, Commitment, and Enthusiasm. "There is no such thing as a free lunch," he explains, one must work and pay a price to be a leader. He also talked about how everyone needs to find a passion in their life, something that they want to get up and do every morning, even if it meant they would do it for free.

At the Leadership Studies building in the heart of campus, the ambassadors started Opening Ceremonies by reciting the Pledge of Allegiance with an introduction from a Group 1, Little Red Riding Hood, ambassador. Next, we saw a short video that gave a glimpse into what will be experienced over the next few days, presented by past HOBY ambassadors.
Pat Bosco, Vice President of Student Life, came to welcome everyone to his home, Kansas State University. He spoke on how important it is for each one of the ambassadors to be empowered by every opportunity with HOBY.