Rockefeller Leadership Fellow: Steven Povich '16

This series introduces the 2015-2016 Rockefeller Leadership Fellows. Each fellow reflects on why he or she wanted to be a part of the program and what aspects of leadership most interests them.

It is clear that the Rockefeller Leadership Fellows Program is an excellent way for leaders in our Dartmouth community to hone their skills for work on campus and as they look toward graduation. While I generally consider myself a natural leader, I have learned through experiences on and off campus that I have a lot to learn to best use my skills. I am especially interested in working with my peers to improve my ability to be a leader by building relationships with my team members. I would be excited to engage with speakers and other students to learn and grow as an individual. Finally, the program has been highly recommended from friends and campus leaders I respect.

I am interested in careers in finance, consulting, and government. This past spring, I worked at a private equity firm in Boston. In this position I enjoyed the opportunity to learn about and analyze businesses in terms of their short- and long-term growth and how they fit into the larger economy. Through this experience I found that I would like to work in a job in which I can use analytical skills to learn about a wide variety of businesses. This summer I will be working in finance again and hope to continue to learn about many businesses and investment strategies. In high school, I interned at my state representative’s office in Boston. I am involved in political advocacy through J Street U Dartmouth and am taking the public economics track in the economics major. While it is not something I am pursuing in the short term, I remain very interested in careers in politics.

I have had leadership roles as co-President of J Street U Dartmouth, trumpet section leader in the Dartmouth College Wind Ensemble, and treasurer of Phi Delta Alpha. As co-President of J Street
U Dartmouth I have learned a great deal about how to be an effective leader. J Street U runs educational and advocacy-related programming as part of a national movement encouraging American diplomatic leadership to achieve a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Through these experiences, I have gained a better understanding of these different styles. I believe my peers and friends would agree that I am a very positive person with a lot of energy who dives into every challenge with excitement. As a participant in the Rockefeller Leadership Fellows program I would bring this positive attitude to make the experience as exciting and worthwhile as possible for myself and the other participants. As a participant, I hope to learn leadership skills, especially with respect to the emotional intelligence I mentioned earlier. I would also like to learn about many different styles of leadership, both from my peers and from the programming. Finally, this program would be an excellent opportunity to meet and work with leaders from all parts of the Dartmouth community.

Steven Povich graduated from Wellesley High School in Wellesley, MA in 2012. A junior at Dartmouth, he is majoring in Economics and minoring in Computer Science and Hispanic Studies. On campus he plays trumpet in the Dartmouth College Wind Ensemble and is the Co-Chair of J Street U Dartmouth, a mentor with the DREAM program, the treasurer of Phi Delta Alpha fraternity, and a participant in the Rockefeller Leadership Fellows Program. After graduating, Steven hopes to pursue a career in finance. In his free time, he enjoys music and getting outside with friends.