Third Space Fellow Jaime Carias Helps Prepare Future Hispanic Leaders with ACE-IT Skills

On February 14-17, 2019, Hispanic leaders and future Hispanic leaders gathered in downtown Chicago for the 37th Annual United States Hispanic Leadership Institute (USHLI) National Conference.

At the conference, Third Space Fellow Jaime Carias led a series of ACE IT Skills: Young Professionals and Career Success workshops for both undergraduate and graduate students attending the conference to help them develop soft skills to aide their career success.

“Learning from these young leaders reminded me how important leading seminars such as this one can be for other students,” Jaime said. “Unsurprisingly, the ACE-IT framework is very relatable to the work these students are leading across their respective campuses and professions.”

The ACE-IT framework stands for the five competencies that Third Space has identified as critical to success-- Adaptability, Cultural Competency, Empathy, Intellectual Curiosity, and 360-Degree Thinking.

The participants were led through interactive exercises aimed to highlight these skills and teach effective problem-solving techniques. A ‘silent interview’, focusing on first impressions, was given to help teach empathy; a ‘tell me more’ session paired the attendees and encouraged curiosity.

Workshop participants gave a lot of great feedback, some even wishing the workshop had been longer. Various comments included “Material was covered perfectly,” and “loved the activities”. While the workshop overall had a great response, participants were all praises for Jaime, one commenting he is “an amazing speaker with great potential.”

The ACE-IT workshop was particularly suited for this conference, as it has a key focus on future leaders and honing these skills could be considered vital for leadership development. The conference not only served as a place for students to learn but is a platform and space to discuss issues around leadership, civic engagement, and the future of the United States.

One of the biggest takeaways was that many of the participants felt that they would be able to apply these skills in a number of ways: "I will be able to use these skills in everyday life,” said one participant. “Not just in my profession.”

Towards the end of the workshop, most students agreed that going forward they could be more social and less scared to meet new people, as well as that they felt better prepared and less afraid to correct those who have wrong assumptions about them.

“I was happy participants left our workshop knowing how to even better apply and leverage the ACE-IT framework in all they are doing,” Jaime said.

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