Leadership Profile

Ella Dahlin
Miss Hope

Mid-thirties

1 semester away from a bachelors degree in psychology

Lives and grew up on the West side of Chicago

Has worked at Madonna House for nearly 4 years

Leadership Story
Influences
JROTC in high school, went on to three years of the ARMY after high school
Learned the importance of hard work
Appreciate differences in cultures and experiences after she spent over
six month deployed in Iraq & Germany (sparked her love in traveling
too)
Became the leader of a support group while in the Army
Army Support Group
Pivotal Moments
As a leader in this group, she saw the importance for:
Suicide prevention
Family support after a spouse/parent is deployed
The psychological effects of a military lifestyle
Led to her interest in studying psychology
Effective Leadership
Patience and Understanding

The world is not black and white, so do not lead like it is

Hard-work and determination

Miss Hope is known for her saying If I say I am going to do something, I

am going to do it.

Experience

You need to understand the group of people you are working with and
make conscious efforts to get to know them better if you want to make
a difference
Advice
Finish your degree and do not get sidetracked
She has been in and out of college working on her degree and life has prevented
her from getting a bachelors degree in psychology

Be humble and level with whatever population you work with

It is important to remember that you are all on the same team, even if you do not
get along with a client, it is important to hear them out

Stay positive and loving

You do not want your job to feel like work
Related to Readings: Theory in Practice

Caldwell
Emphasizes the positive environment by stressing the importance of understanding
others. Miss Hope will stay late and cover for other employees if they have to
pick-up their children.

Kouzes & Portner

Model the way. I love Miss Hope because she walks the walk. She does not ask
anyone to do something that she has not already done.
My favorite leadership qualities
Miss Hope is a unique leader because she is stern, but fun.

She is hard-working, but also understands the importance of taking a

break.

She is focused, but can be caught singing and dancing in the halls.

She is an inspirational leader to me because she knows how to relate

to people, while also leading them. She leads in a way where I
want to follow, instead of feeling forced to follow, which is
something I really enjoy.