Building Young Leaders: The Vision Behind the S.O. What! Ambassador Youth Leadership Program

At tonight’s S.O. What! Ambassador Program meeting, I listened as our young people talked honestly about what was happening in their lives.

One student was adjusting to high school. Another was thinking seriously about college and the future. Others were navigating jobs, housing, finances, friendships, leadership responsibilities, and time management.

These were not polished success stories. They were young people in the middle of figuring life out.

And as I listened, I thought, this is exactly why I created the S.O. What! Ambassador Program.

My Vision Was Never Just to Create Another Youth Program

I know what it feels like to be young and face circumstances that make the future seem uncertain.

I became a mother at fifteen. My life changed before I fully understood what that change would require of me. As I share in my memoir, Life After Birth, I had to learn how to keep moving forward while raising my son, finishing school, continuing my education, and building a life beyond what people might have expected for me.

I also learned that while personal determination matters, support matters too.

That lesson shaped my vision for the S.O. What! Foundation and eventually the Ambassador Program.

I did not want to simply tell young people to be confident, resilient, and successful. I wanted to create opportunities for them to practice confidence, resilience, and leadership while surrounded by people invested in their success.

Our recent meeting was a beautiful example of that vision in action.

From “So What?” to “Now What?”

During our meeting, we asked everyone to share a “So What?” and a “Now What?”

The So What? identifies the situation.

What are you dealing with?

What did not go according to plan?

What is difficult right now?

Then comes the question that matters most:

Now what?

What are you going to do next?

Our ambassadors shared real challenges. They talked about adjusting to new schools, preparing for college, managing responsibilities, dealing with financial concerns, making new friends, and stepping into leadership positions.

But they did not stop with the problem.

They talked about what they were going to do about it.

That is the S.O. What! Mindset.

Resilience does not mean pretending something is not difficult. It means acknowledging what is difficult and developing the confidence to determine your next move.

Leadership Is Something Young People Can Practice Now

I do not want our ambassadors waiting until they graduate from college, get a job, or receive a title before they consider themselves leaders.

They can lead now.

During the meeting, students talked about leadership roles in organizations, band, and special events. Ambassadors who participated in our University of California Santa Barbara leadership camp reflected on meeting people from different backgrounds and developing meaningful relationships with other students.

Returning ambassadors also encouraged newer participants to express themselves, remain open to new experiences, and ask for help when they need it.

That is leadership too.

Leadership is not always standing in front of a room.

Sometimes it is having enough confidence to speak up.

Sometimes it is admitting that you need help.

Sometimes it is walking into an unfamiliar environment and deciding to participate instead of retreat.

And sometimes leadership is using what you have learned to help the person coming behind you.

Our Board Is Part of the Vision

One of the things that made this meeting especially meaningful was seeing our board members actively pour into our ambassadors.

Dr. Jara Best Jones, S.O. What! Awards honoree and our new Treasurer Tina Bailey, County Commissioner Charlie Caswell, Entrepreneur Rico Andrews, and other members of our S.O. What! community offered guidance about resilience, relationships, believing in yourself, and surrounding yourself with people who support where you are trying to go.

More importantly, they made sure our students knew something I want every ambassador to understand:

You have people you can call on.

Our board members are not simply names connected to the organization. They are professionals, leaders, mentors, and caring adults with experiences and resources that can help our young people navigate their academic and personal journeys.

That kind of support is intentional.

In 100 Lessons My Centenarian Grandmas Taught Me, I write about building and relying on community, creating collaborative leadership, and empowering the next generation. Those are lessons I learned from watching the people who poured into me.

Now I have the responsibility and privilege of creating that kind of community for someone else.

This Is What Impact Looks Like

Sometimes we look for impact only in big numbers.

Graduation rates.

Scholarship dollars.

College acceptances.

Awards.

Those things matter, and we celebrate them.

But impact can begin much earlier.

It happens when a student who is struggling learns to ask for help instead of giving up.

It happens when a young person realizes a setback does not have to determine the rest of the story.

It happens when students who once needed encouragement become the people encouraging someone else.

And it happens when a young person starts thinking, I can handle this. I have support. I have choices. I have a next move.

That is why this work matters.

The mission of the S.O. What! Foundation is to help youth and young adults overcome obstacles and eliminate excuses that hinder individual, family, and community success. Through mentoring, scholarships, educational programming, and exposure opportunities, we are working to give young people the confidence, resilience, and skills to build brighter futures.

Building the Next Generation of Leaders

When I looked at the faces on that Zoom meeting, I did not just see students dealing with another school year.

I saw future college graduates.

I saw professionals.

I saw entrepreneurs.

I saw mentors.

I saw community leaders.

Most importantly, I saw young people learning that whatever happens in their lives, they have the power to ask themselves two important questions:

So what?

Now what?

My job is not to remove every obstacle from their paths.

My vision is to help prepare them to face those obstacles with confidence, resilience, support, and a belief that they can keep moving forward.

And I am grateful to have a board and community that believes in that vision enough to help me bring it to life.

Because when we invest in young people today, we are not simply helping them get through school.

We are helping them become the leaders who will shape what comes next.

Learn more about the work of the S.O. What! Foundation and how we are helping young people overcome obstacles, develop confidence, and build brighter futures.