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| Roswell Daily Record: Wilson Attends Leadership Summit |
April 21, 2008 |
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By: Vanessa Beauman
Record Staff Writer
Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M., came to Roswell to share insights on the progress of women in the military and on leadership during the conclusion of the Academy Women Leadership Summit at the New Mexico Military Institute's Daniels Leadership Center Sunday afternoon.
The summit, which began Friday, featured presentations by several influential women who have impacted their world. Presenters included cadet Alea Nadeem, who lived in Iraq during the Gulf War and Maj. Nicole Malachowski, the first woman Thunderbird pilot.
Currently the only woman veteran in Congress, Wilson left home at the age of 17 to attend the United States Air Force Academy. The academy opened its doors to women after an act of Congress signed into law by President Gerald Ford in 1975 forced service academies to allow women.
Wilson joined the third class of women that attended the Air Force Academy.
"The transition ... wasn't easy," Wilson said of a time when fellow USAFA classmates and even officers did not believe women should be allowed to attend or that they should have a separate academy for women.
"You had to be twice as good (as men)" Wilson recalled. Wilson said she was not judged as an individual, but as a leader of a group. "We were ... well aware that we were opening pathways."
Wilson said she was asked by an authority figure at the USAFA, "when it comes down to it, how will you give an order to a guy?" She said she would not allow such a question today but is optimistic such narrow-mindedness is now less common.
"These kinds of dinosaurs have mostly died away," Wilson said. She went on to graduate from the academy in 1982. A Rhodes scholar, Wilson attended Oxford University where she received her master's and doctoral degrees in international relations.
Wilson gave NMMI cadets three suggestions to be efficient leaders and members of their community.
"Live with integrity," Wilson said. "One of the things that ties us together is the honor code. ... It comes to define who you are."
Wilson said that as adults, living a life with integrity takes much more than simply following the rules, which may work for children. As adults, more is demanded of us, according to Wilson.
Living with integrity involves "proactively following a set of values," Wilson said.
Secondly, Wilson said one should choose to be a craftsman at one's work. She said some people believe themselves to be "too good" for the work on their desk, while others are determined to do the best work possible.
Wilson's last suggestion was to act.
"When you're in a position of leadership, that gives you an opportunity to act," Wilson said. "Choose to intervene." She warned the cadets about losing their perception on what is truly important. With perspective, she said, they will be able to make the best decision even when others do not.
Wilson said that on the path to achieving one's goals, there is a ladder that must be climbed. She told the NMMI cadets that as leaders, they should not pull up the ladder once they've reached the summit.
"Others may want to climb up," Wilson said.
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