College Experiences That Helped a Charter School Principal and Administrator at a Middle School Succeed
Alma's undergraduate work at La Casa cultural house at Yale, specifically "event planning," provided invaluable experience that translated directly to their career in education administration. The experience taught the importance of meticulous planning and attention to detail, bridging the gap between "Visionaries" and "people that are really good at operations," ensuring successful execution of ideas.
Event Planning, Project Management, Attention to Detail, Visionary Thinking, Operational Planning
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Alma Zepeda
Charter School Principal and Administrator
Middle School
Yale College 2012
Johns Hopkins School of Education, MS in Elementary Education, 2015
Political Science, American Studies
Education
Operations and Project Management
International Student, Took Out Loans
Video Highlights
1. Developed strong event planning and organizational skills through an apprenticeship model, learning attention to detail and the importance of meticulous planning for successful execution.
2. Combined creative vision with operational expertise, bridging the gap between ideation and implementation.
3. Gained experience in managing logistics, including equipment procurement and scheduling, crucial for translating vision into reality in both teaching and administration.
Transcript
What did you do in undergrad to set you up for success in your career?
My job during my undergraduate studies was probably the best preparation for my career. I worked for the La Casa cultural house at Yale as an assistant to the cultural Dean, and also for the house itself.
This role involved a lot of event planning. Our Dean was incredible and very detail-oriented, teaching us the minutiae of event planning through an apprenticeship model. This attention to detail is what I really brought into teaching and administration.
It's not enough to have a vision for how an event, lesson, or meeting will play out. You also need to plan for that vision to come true. I've seen how visionaries with amazing ideas and creatives sometimes don't communicate well with those who are good at operations and carrying things out piece by piece.
What I learned at the cultural house was how to be creative about crafting my vision and then planning out the minutiae. This meant understanding every step, like being there two hours early for setup or borrowing equipment from Yale's arts department. Sometimes great ideas fail when they lack thorough planning.
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