Debate Coach Turned Mentor by Harley

Debate Coach Turned Mentor by Harley - March 2023 Scholarship Essay

I went into high school knowing what I believed in and what I felt strongly about surrounding many different issues. However, that did not matter because I did not know how to speak up or if I should speak up. Four years later, I am constantly advocating and writing to try to spread what I believe almost anywhere I can. I was able to grow into the person I am now because of my debate coach, Joshua Wimberley.

Coach Wimberley has been in my life for 4 years now and we remain in contact now even if I am not one of his current students. Just a few weeks ago he helped me set up a plan to tutor debate and write cases for pay, something I never would have thought to do had he not told me I should. This goes to show how he continues to impact my life even if I am now on my own. He continuously has his student’s best interests at heart, something very important for a leader to do. When he taught me everything I know today, he always made sure to keep my values in mind and what was in my best interest, even if he disagreed with my beliefs. He knew me as someone who lived what was essentially an “all-or-nothing” life. I never would’ve been caught doing something half-way. He taught me how to take initiative better than I ever had before. Being a young female in debate and who was, at times, politically driven, I faced many setbacks because other people did want me to succeed. In her TED talk, Ellen Sirleaf said “That’s why we need more women in leadership for there will always be those who will tear us apart because they want the status quo to remain.” Coach Wimberley never let me settle in the status quo, he taught me to always have initiative if I want to make a change. He made sure I understood that, chances were, if I wanted something done I would have to do it myself.

Something I found very impressive about him was that he never wavered his self-respect and self-care when looking after us. When I lead, I find myself ignoring my own needs to make sure everyone around me is taken care of and has everything they need. He rarely ever did that but never made us feel ignored or invaluable. There were multiple times he had sleepless nights trying to help me and our other captain set up last minute cases and last minute runs to the store, but that was so we were sure to succeed at the tournament the very next day. Overall, he made sure to take care of himself, something also extremely important for a leader. I strongly believe that a leader cannot take care of others if he does not take care of himself. When a person is not the best version of themselves that they could be at that point in time, it will be hard for them to lead as well as they could. There is a fine line between needing to make sacrifices for your team and risking your self-care, but he rarely fell over that line. When I would fall over that line, he was the first one to bring me back over. I want to embody that ability in every leading action I take.

Coach Wimberley is truly one of the most amazing leaders I have ever had the honor of knowing. I have every belief that he is one of the key reasons I have gotten all the opportunities I have when it comes to doing things I am passionate about. When I lead, he is the person I will continue to base my leadership skills on.