Katie Rhodes 8-23-23 Portfolio Theme & Initial Letter of
This year had a rocky start. I had to miss senior sunrise and the first two days of school because I was sick. Putting so much time and effort into senior sunrise and not being able to attend was extremely difficult. I am so mentally tired and done with high school but I have made it one of my goals to still give it my all. Don’t get me wrong, I am so excited for my senior year but looking at the year ahead of me brings me a lot of anxiety. As Senior Class VP, I am determined to get involved in everything and participate in all events. I want to make my last year at RHS something to remember for not only myself, but the whole senior class, and all of RHS. I want to get out of my comfort zone for one more year and push myself to become the leader and adult I’ve been working to become. I want to inspire the underclassmen and finish up the legacy I’ve been wanting to leave behind at RHS. One of the things I want to focus on this year is being confident in myself and my leadership abilities. I know I am a hard worker and have been trained to be a good leader and a good person. I am a senior now and I need to be an example of exuding confidence. Lastly, I want to fully participate in all of the events at school. Whether that means going to sports events that aren’t mine or attending club meetings regularly, I want to spend my last year going to all of the events and activities. I don’t want to have any regrets about participation and I sure don’t want to miss out on anything from my last year. Sometimes when I’m tired or anxious I think about missing activities out of fear. This goes back to confidence. I need to be confident in myself and just go to everything and be social.
Portfolio #2 "If it comes, let it, if it goes, let it"
I really like this quote and I plan to get a tattoo that is similar to the quote. My tattoo will say “let it be”. I tend to get hung up on things and I am learning to let it go. This quote is important because we need to realize if something is in our life plan, it will work out. As cringy as it is, whatever is meant to be, will be. We have to accept the things that come and go in our lives and learn to adapt with them.
"Make your heart the prettiest thing about you"
I think our culture has put so much emphasis on beauty and physical appearance. We have become so obsessed with ourselves and have forgotten about the important parts of a person, the heart. People spend hours a day in the gym, doing their hair, doing their makeup, and trying to LOOK good. All of that is important but your heart is the most important part of a person. We need to take time to take care of our hearts and work on being a good person. Good people will notice a good heart. Being a good person with is good heart is more fulfilling and rewarding that being visually appealing.
"Dreams don't work unless you do"
I love this quote because I think a lot of people tend to think that good things just happen to good people, which I don’t think is true. I think good things happen to hard working people. People who dedicate time to perfect their craft and give up opportunities to stay on their grind, are successful. Good work ethic is one of the things that my generation lacks. I can guarantee anyone that if they don’t work hard, their dreams won’t just show up at their door. You have to dedicate yourself and your time to achieving these goals.
Portfolio #3 “When we choose to trust the journey and embrace love and joy, we are free to fly.” II enjoyed this quote because I have learned to do that my senior year. Senior year throws a lot of unexpected challenges that we have to face and you can either spend time worrying or you can trust the journey and embrace it. Portfolio #4
2 Leadership Goals: Go out of my comfort zone and create the best senior year for everyone in my class Make new connections with underclassmen and be a good role model
2 Short Term Life Goals: Get into and go to Cal Poly or Fresno State Leave a good impact and legacy on RHS
2 Long Terms Goals: Graduate from college and find a career that I love Get married and have 3 kids and have a good life with family and friends
Portfolio #5 Get into and go to Cal poly or Fresno State Although I didn't get into Cal poly, I got into Fresno State and will be attending in the fall. So I definitely accomplished this goal. “create a fun senior year for myself, and my peers” I believe that through the various activities the senior class officers have put on such as senior sunrise and homecoming we have not only made our senior year fun, but have also created an environment for others to do so as well
Portfolio #6 Magazine Cover
Portfolio #7 Magazine Article This last year has been so exciting for me so far. I have been focusing on bettering myself and finishing the legacy I have created here at RHS. I have been in the leadership program for 4 years and I hope to complete all the goals I have set for myself before I graduate. I have been working on my physical/mental health, time management, kindness, and confidence. I am working each day to be the role model that I had when I was a young one in leadership. I am working each day to create a positive and fun experience for everyone in the senior class. Breaking my comfort zone and working hard have been my day to day mottos. I truly do my best to do it all. I’m not perfect and I most definitely come up short. What matters is how you bounce back from it and how you choose to learn it. I have been very proud of my work so far and I am so excited for everything else to come.
Portfolio #8-Role Model My role model is my mom, the woman who inspires me, supports me, and keeps me in line. Our relationship has come a long way, but I can confidently say that she is one of my biggest supporters. I know if I needed anything she would be there for me, no matter what I needed. She is just as crazy as me and I think we argue because we are so much alike. The older I get the more I realize that we are the same person. She is such a hard worker and even when she’s in pain, she works just as hard. I have never seen someone put so many people in front of themselves and be thrilled to do so. My mom has never questioned putting my brother and I in front of her and she will do anything to help us. She has taught me what hard work looks like and how working hard is the only thing you can do to prove yourself. She has also taught me that people may not remember you, but they will remember how you made them feel. This means that no matter who it is, you should be kind because you never know what they might remember. She has helped me become more professional and has edited every paper I’ve written. She even went to Target the morning of my Homecoming speech because I was stressed about having nothing to wear. Call it spoiled or call it a good mom, she just wanted me to feel confident. She has helped me become the woman I am today and I am so grateful for everything she has taught me. She is the weirdest and funniest lady I know but I am so glad that she is my mom. If I am half lucky in life, I will be just like her. She is the best role model a girl could ask for and I’m incredibly grateful that she gave birth to me and has really embraced this mothering duty.
Portfolio #9-Inner Animal I think that my inner animal is a koala. That may seem like a strange inner animal but I think it fits me. Koalas look super cute and friendly, until you get too close. They are actually really aggressive and mean. I am not saying I am aggressive and mean but I am full of surprises. I am kind of the opposite way. Many have told me that when they first met me I was terrifying, which I still can’t figure out why. Then, when they get to know me, they realize that I am actually really nice and not scary at all (unless I’m mad). I have always loved koalas, I think it's because my name starts with a “K”. When I was little and I was playing indoor soccer my mom would put my hair in pigtails so they wouldn’t know I was crazy on the field. They thought I was this innocent, sweet girl but I was one of the most aggressive. That’s why I feel like a koala but I’m always a surprise. Other than sports, my personality in general is full of surprises. You never really know what you're going to get with me. The other thing koalas like to do is eat bamboo and then go to sleep. If you know me, you know I love to sleep and eat. Those are probably my two favorite hobbies. I’m always up for a nap and a snack. Koalas just munch on their bamboo and then take a snooze. If someone bugs them, they get all crazy, and that’s me in a nutshell.
Homecoming Spread Portfolio #12
Portfolio #13 What I like best about being a member of leadership? The part of leadership I like most is making friends and exploring my comfort zone. I would’ve been afraid to attend events and activities if I wasn’t going to be there for leadership. It has given me an excuse to participate. I have made some of my best friends through this program and I am so grateful for this experience. It has taught me invaluable life skills such as public speaking, resumes, and cover letters.
Portfolio #14 A member of leadership I would like to shout out. I would like to shout out Allie Camara. She has stepped it up this year so much with everything admin. She has gone over and beyond with Winterest, especially the bedazzled basketballs. Not only is she doing great in leadership but she’s also my best friend. I’m so proud of how far she has come throughout her years in leadership.
Section 15-RHS Pride Photo Gallery
Portfolio #16 What I love to do A few things I love to do are work out, go to the beach, hang out with my friends and family, and do fun little crafts. I have really enjoyed working out and taking care of my body because it makes me feel better throughout the day. I have recently discovered Pilates classes, and they are so much fun. I have always enjoyed going to the gym, but it is nice to switch it up with Pilates, so that I’m not sore all the time. I love going to the beach, no matter where that beach is. I’m going to Newport for spring break in Hawaii after graduation and I am so excited for both. I swear tanning and the water heals the soul. I really enjoy hanging out with friends because I have found friends that recharge my battery instead of draining it. Growing up has meant enjoying time with my family and not seeing it as a chore. I am super close with my grandma and I stay at her house once a week.
Portfolio #17 Letter to your parents Dear mom and dad, Thank you so much for sacrificing everything for Matt and myself. I know that I would not have been able to accomplish much without you guys encouraging me every single day. I am grateful that you put us before yourselves and continue to support anything we wish to pursue. You guys have supported all of my crazy ideas and have never doubted my ability to complete something that I put my mind to. I am so grateful to have parents that love and support me and that truly wish the best for me. I have never met more selfless people. I really would not have been able to do anything without you guys. I am aware that not everyone has had this great of a childhood and doesn’t get this much support and that is why I am grateful that you guys have dedicated 24 years to being parents. Katie Rhodes Portfolio 21 & 22
Portfolio #21 A few things we worked on this year have been professional development and accountability. Professional development is a huge part of the leadership class and we do several things to develop our professional skills. Most recently, we have worked on resumes and cover letters. These are in preparation for our mock interviews in late April. Morty goes over how to create our own resumes and how to construct a cover letter. We use these and upload them to our websites for our mock interviewers to look at and critique during our interview.. We do this each year, so for returning students, we get to build off of our old resumes/cover letters. Something that has been specific to this year has been accountability. We have had a lot of issues this year with leaders taking accountability. We have had several discussions with the 5 dysfunctions of a team and using that to complete several activities with our mentors and individually. We also had a recent discussion about what we can do and what Morty can do to combat this lack of accountability. We shared our suggestions with how we could hold each other accountable, how to hold ourselves accountable, and how Morty can hold us accountable.
Portfolio #22 With my senior year coming to an end, it has given me a lot to reflect on. If I take a quick glance at my 4 years of high school, I feel like I haven’t changed much. When I truly think about who I am now, I am so incredibly different. Thank God. Entering high school, I was kind of blank. I didn’t really have any thoughts of my own or identity of my own. Throughout these last few years, I have been given the opportunity to find the things I love and experience different things that have shaped me into who I am today. I have also become so much more confident in myself and have grown into being my own person. Through time, I have found my people and these people have helped me grow into the person I am. I have experienced a lot of things good and bad and all of those have helped me grow. I am so proud that I have become independent and have become my own person. This was something that I really wanted to change after my freshman year. I knew that I needed to develop into a person of my own and I couldn’t always feed off other peoples opinions and personalities. Change has been something I have been trying to do since freshman year. I wanted to stay who I was but grow into a better person. I believe after four years I have done that.
Portfolio #23 The Ideal Leader To me, the ideal leader is one that takes responsibility, is a positive influence to others, encourages others to do their best, and sets an example for everyone around them. This goes back to what we have been talking about regarding accountability. As leaders, we need to be responsible and take accountability if we aren’t doing our job or if we did something wrong. On the flipside, when we see one of our fellow leaders not carrying out their job, it is important that we politely inform them. Leaders, especially in the student council, are role models to everyone on campus. With this being said, we have to act how we want others to. This means participating in our own spirit days and attending our events as well as participating in events of our own. leaders take initiative and do what needs to be done, whether it was directly assigned to them or they need to pick up the slack. Being a leader also includes having a positive attitude and maintaining respect between peers, teachers, and professionals.