Published on November 26, 2020
Charlotte Coakes-Jenkins and Sean Heffron are our 2021 School Captains. Lotte and Sean shared a bit about their personal strengths and values, and how they intend to draw on these as school leaders.
What are your personal strengths?
Lotte: I think I am a bit of a mixed bag. I love working with other people and would like to think I can find a way to make any task enjoyable! I am committed and driven and enjoy
making other people laugh. The power of laughter can really change how a person feels, and I think that making someone else feel good just makes you feel good too.
Sean: My biggest strengths are creativity, confidence and communication. I like to think that these are the strengths that are most evident in my personality. They certainly have their pluses but also their minuses, like all strengths do.
How do you use your strengths in leadership?
Lotte: I love using leadership as a tool to inspire people to “do good”. I feel like my teamwork skills and enthusiasm work well together. I enjoy sparking passion within people that can
lead them to take action for themselves.
Sean: Being able to communicate effectively helps a leader and their team decide on a shared goal that they can all contribute to. Confidence allows me to communicate views and opinions that may be difficult to express or explain. Furthermore, acts of confidence instils a level of trust between the leader and the team.
“I love using leadership as a tool to inspire people to ‘do good’.”
What do you think the School’s strengths are?
Sean: HVGS has offered an environment where I could learn and grow into the person I am. We are so lucky to have access to fantastic facilities and great teachers who challenge and support all students.
Lotte: HVGS excels at providing a wide range of opportunities for students, and really strives to achieve the best for each individual. For me, this comes down to the passion of our teachers and staff, and the lengths they go to in order to help us be our best selves.
What kind of legacy would you like to leave at HVGS?
Sean: I think that it would be very nice to see a bit more crossover between the Junior and Senior Schools. This would be a great way to grow connections.
Lotte: I think the position of captain provides such an amazing opportunity to create change for the future, and I am extremely grateful to be trusted with the role. Saying this, no one knows what the future will have in store for us, and if 2020 has been an indication of what is to come, the School will be installing alien shelters for the first intergalactic invasion! In all seriousness, I hope that my legacy can adapt to what the broader HVGS community needs from me as a leader, and I will do my best to support them in any way I can.
Which one of our values do you most identify with and why?
Lotte: Optimism – I love the idea of always searching for the best in people. Everyone is capable of kindness and even in a world filled with so much hate and anxiety, it only takes a handful of happy people to make a difference!
Sean: Optimism – I think that this year has shown us all that life can really throw a curveball and how important it is to stay positive and focus on the things that you can change.