Julia
Ballou

My name is Julia Ballou, and I am a senior in the Art Studio program here at the University of South Carolina. I am pursuing Graduation with Leadership Distinction in the Professional and Civic Engagement pathway, and I will be graduating on May 7th, 2022. My time here at UofSC has been filled with a variety of unique leadership experiences and chances to explore my own strengths. After I graduate, I want to continue to leave my options open to a variety of different careers that cater to these strengths. Most important to me is the ability to think creatively and use my leadership and education skills to do something meaningful.    

I have spent my undergraduate career involved in many different activities and roles that help me give back to the Carolina Community. My roles include running the Carolina Clemson Blood Drive as both secretary and co-president, serving as a University 101 peer leader for 3 semesters including a specialty academic recovery section, and in addition serving as a Senior Peer Leader for the University 101 programs. I also spent many years with University Health Services as a student worker.

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When I first arrived at the University of South Carolina, I was a Public Health major pursuing a career in medicine. I loved helping others and got involved in a lot of my organizations because of my original career goals. However, when I was a sophomore, I experienced a rough patch in my life where I lost a lot of friends and some family members. A combination of this experience and realizing how Stem classes didn’t give me the space to think creatively or learn tactilely lead to the most drastic decision I ever made- switching my major to art studio. This was also the best decision I have ever made. The remainder of my undergraduate career I tried a variety of career options relating to art and education by taking some courses geared for K12 art education as well as higher education and student affairs, but still loved my studio courses the most- they gave me the space to embrace hands on learning experiences and thinking creatively.

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Despite my career goals diverging from the organizations and work I was involved in, I wanted to continue to be involved because I still love to help others. Being a part of the Carolina Clemson Blood Drive and working for University Health Services allowed me to continue to make a difference in the lives of others without the pressure of pursuing a career in the field. In addition, I loved the event planning aspect of the blood drive. I learned important people skills, event management skills, and leadership skills as a part of the blood drive and while I worked for the university. I joined University 101 programs around the time I changed my major because I wanted to make an impact on first year students and help them find their own unique experiences. I fell in love with being a support system to students, facilitating course work that helped them in their undergraduate careers, and applying leadership skills in the classroom. I also loved helping other peer leaders successfully do the same things as a senior peer leader. Being a peer leader taught me so many educational skills and continued to support my development as a leader. In combination, my within and beyond the classroom experiences here at the University of South Carolina have helped me to realize my own strengths and empowered me to be the strong leader and educator I am today. While my different experiences don’t necessarily correlate to each other, they have taught me important skills I can apply to any career I pursue.

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My ePortfolio will tell my story and how my variety of experiences paired with my undergraduate studies have taught me necessary skills to prepare me for any path I might take. You will read about trial and error with different areas of interest and how volunteer work, leadership positions, and in and out of classroom experiences make me a more well-rounded

student. As you explore my key insights and leadership sections, you will see how my experiences will prepare me to cater to my strengths in any future career I explore.