Certificate in Community-Engaged Leadership
Ashley Loke ’22
Hometown: New York City 
Major: Biological Sciences
Minor: History
How has your participation in the community-engaged leadership program supported you in helping people get along better? My participation in the community-engaged leadership program improved my empathetic and leadership skills.
Community-engaged leadership is … a way to create change in a community.
I work with my community(ies) to address … K-12 education and youth development.
My friends would say I’m … down-to-earth, friendly and optimistic.
Fun fact: My favorite bookstores in New York City are The Strand and Three Lives & Company.
The best part about the community-engaged leadership program is … having the opportunity to connect with other community-engaged leaders in the Cornell community and being inspired by the work that they do.
For my Stage 2 committed project, I … worked with the Raising Education Attainment Challenge (REACH), a program under the Cornell Public Service Center, to bridge the gap in education for local K-12 students in the Ithaca area.
My community partner(s) taught me … the importance of active listening. Children are still in the beginning stages of their growth and development. As such, we should give them the attention and space they need to express themselves, both emotionally and intellectually, because they are the ones who will be building the world and making an impact for generations to come.
I plan to continue my journey as an engaged leader by … making public statements about my community engagement journey to inspire others to join my cause and continuing to be a lifelong learner.
Read more about Ashley’s experience in her blog post, Education and Equality: A reflection on my journey as a community-engaged leader.
Certificate in Community-Engaged Leadership
Build on your interests and apply your experiences (from courses to extracurricular activities) to this program to develop the skills you need to be a community-engaged leader.