Michael King: Leading and Educating through Programs and Example
By Jenn Christ, senior media communications major

After participating in a broad repertoire of campus involvement, Michael King finally has found his niche. After four years of partaking in almost every major student organization on campus, this senior advertising major has moved from being a student volunteer who organizes and participates in events to a student leader who gets paid to plan larger-scaled events.

With his new position as a program manager for the Student Activities Council (SAC), Michael finds that event planning and public relations experiences give him a more intensive portfolio for gaining a job after graduation. Michael proposed and planned the latest SAC event, “The Friday Thing.” In a collaboration project with the Multicultural Center and International Student Affairs (MCISA), February’s “The Friday Thing” celebrated Black History and educated students through trivia.

“On the first Friday of every month, SAC facilitates an activity with an organization to help increase involvement and decrease apathy,” says Michael. “I think this latest Friday Thing provided a chance for students to participate in a quality student activities program and a chance for students to learn about the history of African Americans.”

Upon admission to Webster, Michael received a leadership scholarship in conjunction with the Student Leadership Development Program (SLDP). This scholarship gave Michael, now a senior majoring in advertising, more confidence in his leadership abilities and the SLDP gave him the independence to grow into a campus-wide leader.

Since his freshman year, Michael has actively participated in numerous groups on campus, including Big Brothers Big Sisters, RHA, and Campus Crusade for Christ. A three-year orientation leader, Michael has also worked as a peer educator with PEZ. Serving as sergeant-at-arms, an at-large senator and now representing the School of Communications as senator with the Student Government Association, Michael assisted both the Gorlok TV and Super Fan task force committees and he has served on the Webster Work Worldwide committee. Michael likes to hang at the University Center and Multicultural Center, and he has been noted for his involvement with the Association for African American Collegians (AAAC), coordinating such events as last year’s “Soul Food Night.” To top things off, Michael also pursues more artistic interests, recently performing in the Opera Studio concert.

“Michael is very enthusiastic and has such a vibrant personality that you can't help but know he is near by the energy that radiates from him!” says Brandyn Woodard, director of the MCISA. “Michael has participated in several events sponsored by the MCISA and even hosted International Night 2003 wearing clothing native to Jordan. His commitment to learning about all people was most recently evidenced by his study abroad travels to Thailand.”

“I have gained many leadership skills from my experience in Thailand,” says Michael. “I not only see things from a different perspective, but I now possess more knowledge of myself and trust in my actions.

Through his all of these leadership experiences, Michael wants to leave an example for people to follow: “I’ve always told students to try to get involved in everything you can and share yourself with the Webster community—to experience everything you can, grow and become better from it.”
Michael definitely practices what he preaches.