For eighth grade student Rees Roggenstein, leadership is an avenue to impress the student body. Landing the position of Student Body President for junior high, Roggenstein hopes to run the junior high with a firm hand and an open mind.

In this role, Roggenstein hopes to appeal to the interests of all without being pressured into wrong decisions for the students. Knowing that many responsibilities fall upon his shoulders he relies on his ability to discern what is best for his peers.

“My standard for myself is to be strong in mind, body and soul,” Roggenstein said. “I hope to always do what is fair and just among the students. Being the President is a big responsibility and I hope that any decision I make is the right one for not only me but for my fellow classmates.”

In order to prepare himself for a promising future, Roggenstein tries to focus on enhancing his leadership skills. Although he has been commended on his leadership qualities before, he still believes much can be improved on. Observing the difficulty of public speaking, Roggenstein hopes he can develop his speech abilities more, he says.

“I hope to develop better public speaking skills,” Roggenstein said. “It’s always a little nerve-wrecking talking in front of your peers, but hopefully I can get rid of all nerves and talk coolly and collectedly. I also hope I get better at getting to know more people and be more social.”

California Junior Scholarship Federation (CJSF) gives junior high students the opportunity to become more involved in different activities throughout the year. Within the club, a president is elected, along with other positions such as secretary or treasurer. Roggenstein was elected first semester as the President for CJSF, and is grateful for the different opportunities he was allowed to be a part of and help lead.

“Being in CJSF gave me a chance to be involved in the different events going on,” Roggenstein said. “It also helped me in my ability to run a meeting because I was the president. This club has given me plenty of opportunities to help those who are in need and I?m very thankful for that.”

Junior high science teacher Terry Richards is very impressed by Roggenstein’s work ethic, seeing him as a strong participant in class discussions. Richards anticipates Roggenstein to become a leader when he enters into his high school years, he says.

“Rees is a natural leader,” Richards said. “His quiet, funny personality draws people to him. I believe Rees will be a valuable leader for the high school. He’s a great kid with great expectations for himself. I look forward to seeing him throughout his high school years.”

Though he is young, Roggenstein already sees a future career path. With his father as the President and CEO of Forward Advantage, both father and son hope to see him eventually fill the role. This acts as a motivation for Roggenstein to be the best leader possible, knowing that one day he will have to lead the people of Forward Advantage.

“Part of my dad?s job is the requirement to lead his employees and set the direction for where he wants the business to go,” Roggenstein said. “Also a factor is the ability to speak and get to know potential buyers of the software. I need to be able to do that one day and I just hope that when the time comes I will be ready.”

It is easy to act like a leader when put in a position of power but when put with a group of friends it can be a difficult task, he says. Roggenstein has discovered that a good way to better leadership skills is to practice them around friends.

“I try to maintain peace within my group of friends,” Roggenstein said. “I act as a mediator sometimes when some of my friends are having problems. I think it?s a hard thing to step in the middle of others problems because it may be overstepping boundaries but sometimes you have to get involved. If I can?t learn to help out my friends in bad situations how can I help out those that I?m leading when something unpleasant comes along?”

Joshua Carter, ’16, continues to be influenced by Roggenstein’s leadership ability to branch out into the unknown world. Creating new friendships due to Roggenstein’s sociability, Carter is grateful to have a strong friendship with Roggenstein.

“We?ve been best friends since kindergarten,” Carter said. “Rees and I have always done things together including making new friends. Rees is more outgoing than I am so he?s really helped me branch out more to talk to new people and create new friendships. It?s great to have a friend like this because it also helps with getting more involved in different activities. Also, Rees is always there to help out whenever some of us friends are having problem; he?s really good at resolving issues.”

Many would consider that knowing the best for people around oneself is an important component of being a great leader. Roggenstein believes that he has been blessed with this ability to lead others with the understanding of what will help them the most.

“I believe God has helped me immensely,” Roggenstein said. “He?s given me the ability to be patient in complicated situations. He?s also given me the gift of having discernment. It?s not easy trying to be a leader because there are always people around to tear you down. God has given me the strength to look past those people and believe in myself.”

For more profiles, read the Feb. 27 article, Rookie actress awes audiences.