Pierson Cepeda has been actively involved in several student organizations at their university including the Communication Society, Cougar Chronicle, Student Philanthropy Council, and Trading Card Games Club. Through these experiences, they have taken on leadership roles and learned valuable skills such as writing, social media use, and email communication by working with other people. Pierson reflects that becoming involved in these organizations as a first-year student helped them develop confidence and see more opportunities at the university beyond classroom learning. Their involvement in TLC has further enhanced their view of leadership and cultivated a leadership style of helping others achieve their potential.

1. Pierson Cepeda
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Before joining the Tukwut Leadership Circle (TLC), I had been an active member of a
couple of student organizations on campus. The organizations I had been involved in were: the
Communication Society, the Cougar Chronicle, Student Philanthropy Council and the Trading
Card Games Club. During my time in each of these student orgs, I have grown into some
leadership roles within the clubs. The Communication Society was my very first form of campus
involvement. At my first meeting, I was able to step into an officer position by simply
volunteering my time and effort towards the club. The existing executive board was searching
for a marketing officer and the opportunity was aligned with the interests I wanted to explore.
From that time in Fall 2014 till this day, I have been an active member in the same club.
Another of the organizations in which I am fortunate enough to be involved is the Cougar
Chronicle. Something that has been a revelatory experience for me in college is the realization
that I like writing. From grade school to high school, I had always been more gifted at math and
science, often struggling with the humanities and the writing aspect. Fast –forward to the present
and I would have been hard-pressed to guess that in the future I would have been a staff writer
for any publication even enjoying more writing. Like the Communication Society, the
opportunity to write for the school paper was as simple as attending a meeting and mustering the
courage to get involved.
The reason I bring up these experiences is because they were transformative. All of the
relationships, the great people I have met, even the opportunities like TLC were a result of those
simple actions. The Communication Society and the Cougar Chronicle have easily become
places of comfort for me. Something that I re-discover, and often forget, is that I learn the most
from other people. Learning to write news stories, use social media and send emails are things

2. that other people have taught me. Learning to do these things may seem trivial but learning to do
them effectively are lessons in nuances that only other people can teach you. I consider myself
an avid learner which is something that I have pursued more intently, as a result of my time in
TLC. There is always something new to learn or something to improve on and I have made that a
mantra of mine, with regards to how I view leadership.
Every leadership opportunity I have been afforded has had a couple of things in common.
First lesson is that opportunities for leadership are everywhere and they require the willingness
of an individual to step up and take part. During my first couple of years at CSUSM, I found
myself feeling like each day was a re-hash of high school, with a little more responsibility. It was
not until I first got involved did I feel the difference a college experience could offer. What that
learning experience has done for me was help me develop a foundation of confidence in myself
and I believe the TLC program has only done more to enhance that aspect. One view that has
influenced my views on leadership is the idea of confidence, and its cultivation. Being able to
instill confidence in other individuals is harder than it sounds because it is not just a one and
done moment; cultivating confidence is a continual process for an individual and helping other to
do it requires developing relationships with one another and learning how to bring that part out
of them. A SMART goal of mine was learning more about my leadership style and the TLC
program has helped me reflect on how that plays out for me. I found that some of my happier
moments are the opportunities in which I help others achieve something and being able to work
with people and helping them bring out their leadership is definitely my style.
TLC has definitely been an enriching experience. I will be graduating in May and as a
result, I have been more thoughtful about my time at CSUSM. I have a mix of feelings about
leaving. There is excitement in taking the next step and reluctance about leaving what has been a

3. second home. Something I know is that I am prepared for what will come and that everything I
have involved myself with has been purposeful. TLC has been a place in which I can reflect on
what being a leader means and how that plays out in the real world. As I take the next step, I
know I will find myself learning more about myself, as a leader, and it all began at CSUSM.