The dictionary definition of a leader is a person who rules or guides or inspires people. Jeremy Ramos, student body president, was asked a series of questions that revealed his views on being a leader including his strengths and weaknesses.

Publication adviser Greg Stobbe conducted this in-depth interview on Oct. 19.

Stobbe: What does it mean to be a leader?
Ramos: I?ve learned that leadership is more serving than anything else. We need to serve; we don?t really get much recognition for what we do so we need to learn how to be humble. We can?t please everyone and, when we do, people don?t actually come up to us and say ?what a great job we did?.

For example, last year we had the football kickoff rally and I thought it was one of the best rallies we?ve had and when I asked someone how we did they said ?oh it was alright?. The only ones who really understand the full value of what we do are the people that do it.

S: Why did you want to be president? Did you have any idea what it would be like?
R: I really had no idea what it would be like. Tosland (Josh Tosland, leadership adviser) kept asking me, ?are you going to do it? and I really didn?t know. I was still a little apprehensive. When I decided to do it, Tosland asked if I knew the responsibilities and if I was up to it and I said “yes I knew them,” but he said he was going to push me to fulfill my duty as a leader. He knows me well enough to know how to motivate me.

S: What weaknesses as a leader do you need to work on?
R: My weaknesses are organization. I don?t like writing stuff down but I?m getting better at it.

S: As president what is your responsibility to the leadership team?
R: I feel my responsibility is to influence them. We have five veteran members and we have to be more focused and make sure stuff gets done. We have to show members who aren?t very experienced how to be more proactive. We have to learn how to do things without waiting to be asked to do it because it?s really student leadership who are responsible. Tosland and Gilmore (Ericlee Gilmore, leadership adviser) are mainly there to guide us.

S: How are you going to address your weaknesses as a leader?
R: I?m going to focus on fixing them. Tosland will point things out to me; he?s one of the few people who can level with me. He?ll tell me what I?m doing wrong and sometimes he?ll tell what I can do to fix it and how to improve but he usually just tells me to go figure it out?so I do.

S: Do you think everyone needs someone to be held accountable to?
R: I definitely think everyone, especially leaders, needs to be held accountable to somebody, because they make important decisions. They need someone to be advising them and pointing things out along the way to keep them in check.

S: What do you do in class to teach you how to be a better leader? Are you guys reading a book?
R: We?re actually reading a book right now together in class called The Servant by James Hunter. We?re learning the difference between power and authority.

S: What have you learned about power and authority?
R: Power means you?re in a position where you force people to do things instead of working things out with them. Authority is the power to influence people to do the task on their own. Having authority means being involved in what the people are doing more than the people who are working.

S: What?s an example of a time you exercised power and authority?
R: At the float meetings for homecoming I had to use power and authority when some people were working hard and others were slacking off. I had to tell the people who weren?t doing anything what to do and then I joined the group to work together. It is important for a leader to work along side those who are doing.

S: Now we?ve talked about your weaknesses, what about your strengths?
R: Leadership actually took a strengths test online; it cost us $15 we got a group discount it normally costs $25. We took a really long quiz then at the end it evaluated our answers and tells us what strengths you have. It gives you the titles of your natural strengths. One of mine was ?WOO? which stands for winning others over determined. This basically means I?m a people person and I?m good at building relationships with people. Another one was adaptability which means I?m willing to change plans to make things work for the best for everyone.

S: In your life who has been the most influential person in shaping who you are today?
R: One of the people in my life who left a huge impact on me is my Grandpa Wayne Park; he passed away two days before 9/11. I admired his character he knew who he was. He made a big change in his life he used to be an alcoholic and he made a total turn around in his life. He was one of the strongest Christians I know, I admire his ability to change .He became disciplined.

S: What do you want to accomplish this school year?
R: I want to make a difference. Tosland is always asking me did you make a difference. In all my leadership situations the question is always there, “did I make a difference?”

I also want to increase student participation. I want to make this year memorable year. I want to take this year look back on it and have no regrets. This is my senior year and I want me and my classmates to look back ten years later knowing they had a memorable year. It also has to do with living life with a passion.

Living life with a passion makes a big difference you can usually tell when a person is passionate about something and when the passion isn?t there. I have a real passion for what I do. I have passion to leave a mark on the 2006/2007 school years.