Senator stresses leadership at TR eXperience Summit

State Sen. Wendy Davis

State Sen. Wendy Davis delivered the keynote address for the first of four scheduled Leadership eXperience Summits for the academic year Oct. 19 on TR Campus.

TR president Tahita Fulkerson opened the summit, hosted by the Center for Leadership Development.

“When opening this campus, we knew that most students, most faculty, need to see themselves as leaders,” she said. “They need to study leadership, and they need to hear outstanding leaders.”

A former TCC student, Davis described her educational journey to the students.

“No one in my family had gone to college, and I really didn’t believe college was for me,” she said.

Davis said she found out about TCC through a brochure and enrolled on NE Campus at what was then Tarrant County Junior College with the aspirations of becoming a paralegal. She then attended Texas Christian University and Harvard Law School.

“The first time I ran for Fort Worth City Council, I lost, and that was extremely hard for me,” she said. “However, it ignited a fire inside of me to become even more of a leader in my community.”

TR student development associate Lionel Bailey said leaders like Davis set good examples for students.

“Students need to have a sense of their ability to change things,” he said. “They have the resources and opportunities to learn how to change things. By bringing in leaders with proven track records through this program, we can bring out full leadership potential among our students,” he said.

The center provides leadership training, resources and opportunities for students and the community to succeed.

To learn more about the center, students can contact Bailey at lionel.bailey@tccd.edu or stop by TREF 1501C.

Terrance Gilbert