Hayley Meredith

Portfolio Leadership Reflection

My decision to come to Touro University Nevada (TUN) was based partially on my
interview day and the interactions I had with the student ambassadors. I was thrilled to have the
opportunity to be a student ambassador myself, and the position was be rewarding to me on a
personal level, as well as a professional level. I am always looking for opportunities to broaden
my participation within my university. Being a student ambassador made me feel so much more
connected to our program and gave me a stronger sense of belonging to TUN. Being a part of
this group encouraged development of my professional communication and networking skills.
As Vice President of the TUN School of Occupational Therapy's Student Government
Association (SGA), I took it upon myself to kick start fundraising for our cohort. At the end of
my time in office we raised close to $1,000! I encountered some difficultly in encouraging my
classmates to participate in the fundraisers. But, I noticed more cohort contribution when I
listened to my classmates and organized fundraisers at businesses of their choice. I found that
communicating effectively directly affected our success and it was important for me to lead by
example. This was a wonderful way to exercise my leadership skills and to advocate for support
of our profession on campus. I think this was a good lesson to be learned and I will remember
when I encounter leadership positions in the future.
Before graduate school, I was fortunate to be chosen for a pediatric occupational therapy
internship in Auckland, New Zealand. It was there that I first considered practicing as an
occupational therapist abroad. I started doing research online and became aware that many
countries required that I be educated at a program approved by the World Federation of
Occupational Therapy (WFOT). However, Touro University Nevada was not listed on the WFOT

website! I brought this to Dr. Yvonne Randall, and she was surprised to hear that we were not
WFOT approved and was glad that I had brought this to her attention. She began the application
process on November 26th, 2013 and kept me informed on the status of our application. On April
7th, 2014 the Touro University Nevada School of Occupational Therapy became a WFOT
Approved Educational Program! This was an example of how I was able to demonstrate my
proactive leadership abilities and contribute to our program.
Based on the Strengths Finder 2.0 Assessment my strengths include individualization,
futuristic, connectedness, activator, and communication. These themes demonstrate that I tend to
be very intrigued by the unique qualities of each person, am a forward thinker, and move beyond
my own self-interests and inspire others to see the connections between their abilities,
accomplishments, and purpose. My strengths also showed that I take action and strive to lead by
example, and use communication to inspire and energize people with words. My areas of growth
for leadership include active listening and being mindful, or present. I have received this from
my peers and family members. Being mindful is something I have struggled with for a long time,
but have sought outside resources in mindfulness training and mediation.
Overall, my time in the TUN OT program has taught me that I enjoy taking on leadership
roles, and each experience has taught me how to improve my skills. Participating as an active
member at school or in the workplace contributes to my happiness and professional
development. Through past leadership experiences I have improved my communication and
networking skills, and will absolutely carry these with me to future leadership roles. Leadership
is an important aspect of being an occupational therapist and I can demonstrate this by
advocating for my patients and interactions with my colleagues.