“Houghton has been a home for me and a place where I have grown and changed,” stated Emma Steele ’18 as she reflected on the past four years. As a major in business administration with minors in math, art, data science, Bible, and communication, Steele embodies what it looks like to be a passionate student-leader with a host of diverse interests.
Over the past three years Steele has been involved in her class cabinet, serving as vice president her sophomore and junior year, and the senior class president this year. She was also a Highlander leader and an EMT, running with the Houghton ambulance for the past two years.
One of Steele’s passions is student engagement on Houghton’s campus, since “there is so much more that Houghton has to offer than simply taking classes and getting a degree.” Her leadership roles also reflect her deep-seated desire to “reflect God’s love for me in the way that I interact with and help others.” These motives have manifested themselves in her leadership roles, and have led her to cultivate a deeper love for people. “Serving in these positions has fostered my love for people and desire to help them,” she said. “And, of course, working in these positions has helped me see Houghton’s needs as a campus in a much clearer light.” Her passions have “given me the drive I’ve needed in order to take on these positions and fulfill all that they require. It hasn’t always been easy with classes, friendships and life in general, but I would say that it has definitely been worth it!”
Steele considered it “an absolute joy” to serve as a Highlander leader. The role involved “working with another leader to guide a group of incoming students on a wilderness adventure in the Houghton woods and then the Adirondacks. Along the way, a Highlander leader not only needs to have the hard skills required in outdoor living, but also the soft skills required to help mentor the Highlander participants through this change in their lives. Working the ropes course and balancing decisions and viewpoints with my co-leaders were fantastic experiences for me.”
Steele would encourage underclassmen “to pursue any and all interests or passions they have energy for, and intentionally invest in the people around them. Houghton is this unbelievably cool opportunity where you can dive into areas of study that most people would never have the time to explore, and do it with the support of faculty that care deeply about their students holistic growth.” She added, “As a side note, I think all students should take a math class while at Houghton because our math faculty rock. And try to get involved in Highlander. If you missed the chance to do the actual program, take Outdoor Leadership Training from Coach Smalley!”
Following graduation, Steele will be getting married to Luke Duttweiler in May and moving into the Rochester area, where she is currently job hunting. “Even though it will be bittersweet for me to graduate, I feel confident in leaving that I am ready for what God has prepared next.”