And A New Kind Of Secular Confession — The core purpose of The University of Texas at Austin is, “To Transform Lives for the Benefit of Society.” Please share how you believe your experience at UT-Austin will prepare you to “Change the World” after you graduate. When my students begin the process of writing their essays that will…

When the typical markers of success and achievement just don’t tell the whole story — When Ben Cichy, the Senior Director of Lunar Program Engineering at Blue Origin, posted on social media that his 2.4 GPA in his first semester in college, thousands of comments poured in. These messages of assumed failure leading to real success restores our hope, and that feels good. Got a…

In the midst of small-town political strife, rage, righteous blaming, calling out, casting blame, and shielding identities, I felt inspired to write this letter to my lonely mountain town — To quote Terry Tempest Williams, “We are a community of recluses, ruffians, and renegades.” These three Rs are what we share, our common understanding even when we can’t understand each other. We are a community that holds sacred our starlit nights, epic sunrises and sunsets, and our birds. Oh, our…

When I first learned about the Enneagram personality test, my friend thought I was an Enneagram 3 — the Achiever. I’d always craved the grade, the win, the acceptance, the accolades. Achieving greatness was the adventure Years later, when I learned a bit more about the test and its corresponding…

“Whatever your situation is, you need to know that your gifts don’t get lost as you move forward. You take those with you.” -Annie Hawkins, Magnolia Journal|Fall 2022 Just 3 months into my yearlong program, I’d left Austria where I was teaching English on a prestigious fellowship. Prestigious doesn’t always…

What Career Ready Can Look Like (or rather, smells like) — As students in Switzerland get ready to begin 9th grade, many of them are building up the courage to start making cold calls to companies and organizations across the country. …

And their parents — This address was originally delivered to a Boys Team Charity League Chapter in Reno, Nevada in 2022. You’re a remarkable group. Really. I’m not just saying that. Research also says you’re remarkable in ways teens have never been before. Research has already shown that your generation is different- we’re calling…