As a young girl, I knew nothing about leadership. As a matter of fact, I was quiet, closed in, and sexually abused at a young age. Being abused at age 10 takes away not only your youth, but your growth and taints the world you live in. I made many mistakes growing up and didn't attend college more than 1 semester out of high school. Looking back, I was smart and intelligent and could have done so much after high school. I wouldn't take my experiences back because I am a resilient, strong and confident women because of it. My professional journey started in private sector but quickly diverted to working for county and now city government. I am a product of the old saying, "Hard work pays off", because I started from the very bottom in a municipal court that needed restructuring. Due to poor management, our office had a revolving door of people coming in and quickly going out. In 7 years through many changes, I worked from the customer service window, moved up to the senior court clerk position, and eventually to the court administrator without a degree. The Judge, my mentor, had faith in me that I could lead the department. I was hesitant, but I trusted in what she saw in me. The absolute first day I became the leader of my department, I promised myself and my current employees that I would lead them with honesty, integrity and selflessness. I would provide the training and skills needed to become the best court clerks they could be. All this was promised because of the difficult times I experienced in the office with poor leadership. As I grew stronger as a leader, I was determined to not only change the environment in the office, but the perception of courts. Most courts are not considered customer service oriented. Most defendants, are known as customers in my court, and are treated with dignity and respect regardless of their circumstances. You see, I am in charge of a department that provides a service and we must treat our customers as such. Countless times I have been told that we are the most pleasant court they have visited! In the court clerk organizations, I network and stress the importance of changing the perception of our profession! As a leader at work and at home, I made the decision to start college to obtain my degree. At work, I want to continue to advance in city leadership and at home I wanted to provide an example to my children that I too will get a degree. I am now 4 classes from obtaining my associate's degree and my two oldest daughters are both attending universities! In addition, I have been recognized in the State of Texas as the 2020 Court Personnel of the Year, our city was recognized by Tyler Technologies as the Municipal Government Excellence award for our technology advances during COVID-19, and I am a member of the Leadership Advisory Board as well. I live and breathe leadership. I am so passionate about it, I am constantly thinking of ways to not only advance myself, my family, my staff but others as well! Unlike when I was a child, I now have a strong voice, very social and love to mentor others. I have no doubt that my childhood struggles are what drive me to be an excellent leader in everything I do.

In my current profession, I am the Director of Municipal Court Services and one of the lowest paying directors for the city. I am an advocate for my profession so that I can pave the way for higher pay for those that work in similar positions in other cities. In 2020, I asked for my title to reflect my job duties in my position and council approved my request and declared the justification. Prior to this change, I was paid on the level of a person below management as a Court Administrator. My motivation to confront disparity is the desire to be respected and compensated as a leader for the city. As I attend training and conferences in my profession, I speak to other leaders and encourage them to look at their city charters. The charter is a legal document that explains how the city operates and if they are in a similar situations as I am in my city, I encourage them to advocate for themselves on their compensation and titles. The positions that are typically carried by men have a much higher pay than my position, such as Chief of Police, Finance Director, Director of Public Works, City Manager, and IT Director. With my desired degree of a Bachelor of Science in Public Service Leadership from University of Houston-Clear Lake's College of Human Sciences and Humanities, I feel I can make a difference in the gender disparity. According to Zippia.com, among City Manager, 33.3% of them are women compared to 66.7% which are men. In addition, women earn $.88 for every $1 earned by men. These statistics prove the disparity in my desired profession. I plan to not only confront the gender disparity but the race disparity as well. Zippia.com also showed the dominance in the white race at over 80% and the Hispanic race at only 7% of city managers. The degree will provide me with the missing pieces of the organizational functions and a complete picture of how a city is managed. There are many different aspects to city management and it includes the mentorship and leadership for all city directors, being the liaison for elected officials such as city council and mayor, ensure the financial integrity of the municipal organization and most importantly, represent the city's interest and people by listening and responding. My ultimate goal of city management will show that women can lead a city and be successful.