Charlize Gougouniani

Capstone

Collaboration and shared leadership from a student's perspective emphasize the importance of
teamwork, communication, empowerment, and collective accountability. I have spent many
quarters collaborating creatively and coordinating. By working together collaboratively and
sharing leadership responsibilities, students such as myself can achieve shared goals,
maximize potential, and foster a sense of belonging and community within the academic
environment. Through my experiences in collaborative projects and shared leadership roles, I
have cultivated valuable skills in communication, teamwork, and collective decision-making,
leading to significant personal growth, enhanced learning outcomes, and a deeper appreciation
for the power of collaborative efforts in achieving shared goals.

One of the key artifacts I will be discussing is my final performance for a Shakespeare project.
This project involved creating our adaptations of scenes from Shakespeare's Macbeth. As part
of a collaborative effort, my group and I took on the challenge of reimagining the classic play. I
played a central role in prop management and providing creative direction to ensure our
performance stood out. In our interpretation, we transformed Macbeth into a contemporary
rendition inspired by the movie Mean Girls. This creative endeavor required extensive
collaboration and shared leadership among group members. As the designated prop manager, I
not only coordinated the acquisition and organization of props but also contributed to shaping
the artistic vision of our production. Without the cohesive teamwork and shared leadership
within our group, our project would have yielded a vastly different outcome.

Initially, we grappled with uncertainties regarding how to approach the adaptation and integrate
elements from Mean Girls, but we were able to cross that bridge fairly quickly. Being the prop
manager for our short play, I felt a sense of responsibility to contribute meaningfully to the
creative process while ensuring the logistical aspects of prop acquisition and management were
addressed effectively. Throughout the project, I engaged in a continuous process of reflection to
assess our progress and identify areas for improvement. This involved weekly discussions with
group members to exchange ideas, and refine our creative vision. I realized the importance of
effective communication and teamwork in overcoming challenges and driving creative
innovation.

My second artifact is where we worked on the creation of a captivating choice-based story game
centered around the journey of a struggling artist during the Medici era. This ambitious project
demanded extensive creative writing and the crafting of unique storyline plots to engage our
audience effectively. In this project, I assumed a pivotal role in ensuring the cohesion and
progress of our team by facilitating weekly meetings dedicated to reviewing our advancements
and refining our strategies. In addition to organizational duties, I actively participated in content
creation, contributing to the development of visual assets crucial to enhancing the immersive
experience of our game.
Our team encountered various challenges that tested our creativity and problem-solving skills.
One of the initial hurdles was devising a cohesive narrative that effectively captured the essence
of the struggling artist's journey, as we were creating a character from scratch. Additionally,
coordinating the diverse talents and ideas within our team posed a challenge, as we navigated
differing perspectives and approaches to storytelling. As the project unfolded, we faced
technical obstacles related to the integration of images and the implementation of choice-based
mechanics, such as embedding the images and coordinating the links to make sure our story
would run correctly, requiring innovative solutions to overcome.

Through collaborative brainstorming sessions and iterative feedback loops, we applied our
learnings to address these challenges effectively. I leveraged my organizational skills to ensure
that our weekly meetings remained productive and focused, providing a platform for reflection
and course correction as needed. Our choice-based story game emerged as a compelling
narrative experience, immersing players in the world of the struggling artist and the intrigue of
the Medici era. Through our collaborative efforts, we not only achieved our project goals but also
experienced significant personal and professional growth.

While the specific contexts and challenges differed between my Shakespeare final performance
and the choice-based game development, the underlying principles of collaboration and shared
leadership remained consistent. In both projects, I assumed leadership roles that involved
facilitating communication, coordinating tasks, and providing creative direction, underscoring the
importance of adaptable leadership in diverse contexts. As I move forward, I am excited to apply
the lessons learned from these experiences to future endeavors, both within and beyond the
academic realm. Collaboration and shared leadership will continue to be guiding principles in
my approach to learning, growth, and practice, as I strive to maximize my potential and
contribute meaningfully to collaborative efforts in achieving shared goals.