As told by Isaac Smith
Education helps us learn for ourselves. So as we experience higher education, we learn for ourselves the power that we actually have.
Photo by August Miller
One of my childhood memories was watching “The Wizard of Oz” every Thanksgiving on TV. At the very end of the movie, you'll remember the good witch, Glinda, comes down and she's talking to Dorothy and Dorothy's very sad, because [she’s thinking], “How am I going to get home? And the balloon’s gone. And now what?” [Glinda] tells her to click her heels together three times and repeat, “There's no place like home.”
One of the phrases that gets overlooked in that movie is, “You've always had the power, my dear. You just have to learn it for yourself.” That’s what education does. It helps us learn for ourselves. So as we experience higher education, we learn for ourselves the power that we actually have.
I'm a first-generation student. My ultimate goal when I first came to Utah Technical College at Provo was to complete my associate of applied science degree as fast as I can. Along the way, I had other faculty who were super supportive of me. One suggested that I leave my cashiering job at a grocery store and become a legal secretary on an internship for an attorney in Provo. So I did that, and it gave me confidence in that space.
When I graduated, the job of secretary to the dean of business at Utah Technical College at Provo came open. I was friends with the department secretaries, Camille and Gloria, up on the second floor of the Woodbury School of Business. I went to them and I said, “Hey, this job is open — are one of you applying for it?” Thinking to myself, “because I'd like your job.” And they're like, “No, no, no. That's a scary job.” So instead, I applied for it and I was hired by Dr. Lucille Stoddard, who was the dean of the School of Business at a time when women didn't have leadership roles in higher education. I learned a lot from her. She encouraged me and she was a great boss.
Along the way, I had two kids. I decided I want to get my associate of science degree, so I continued my education, doing that when UVU was Utah Valley Community College. Then it became Utah Valley State College and suddenly a bachelor’s degree was a thing. I'm thinking, “Hmm, maybe I want to get a bachelor's degree.” So I watched the School of Business and their growth in new programs. I started taking my business core, and I got all of my core courses done — everything I could before I had to choose between a Bachelor of Science in international business or a Bachelor of Science in accounting. I decided corporate tax sounded more fun than international business. So, I completed my bachelor's in accounting.
I worked a long time at UVU and I'd even been named the director of budget back in the ‘90s. I didn't have a bachelor's degree, and I felt vulnerable, because I’d go to meetings with other budget directors across the state, and I thought, “They're all smarter than me because they have bachelor's degrees. And if somebody finds out I don't have a bachelor's degree….” It was like imposter syndrome.
It was interesting because when I completed my bachelor's degree, I got notes from two colleagues congratulating me because they'd never completed their bachelor's degrees. It was the first time [feeling] this unspoken imposter syndrome with everyone.
At one point in my career here, I looked at other job opportunities, and there was one that I thought was always in my career trajectory. I went through the process of updating my resume, talking to people about the position, and I got to reading the cover letter — I couldn't do it. Like, I don't think I want this after all.
So, I went and met with President [Matthew S.] Holland. We talked through what I was feeling, talked through the pros and cons my husband and I had looked at, but talked through this desire to do something more. I just mentioned to him, “I think I'd like to be a vice president someday.” I didn't know that he was going to be doing reorganization in the next four months. And one day in May of 2013, he called me into his office and told me that he was reorganizing and asked me to be vice president of planning and budget and human resources.
I am the fourth female vice president in this institution’s history. Recently, we were at a cabinet meeting and we had a facilitator. He said, “We need to make sure that we have some diversity in the breakout groups, so I'd like the men to divide up.” And there was a sudden realization that “Wait, women are in the majority in this room?” I've spent a lot of my career in rooms where I may be the only woman, especially in the world of finance.
“Be a first-rate version of yourself and not a secondary version of someone else.” That's a Judy Garland quote. I think we have imposter syndrome because we see this perfect image of whatever that position is supposed to be, or whatever wisdom we think that person is supposed to have. We forget that we bring our own strengths into that role. We can only use the strengths that we've been given. As long as we're trying our best, that's the best we can do.
Happy retirement, Linda!
Links:
UVU Woodbury School of Business
Linda Makin directory profile
Linda Makin retirement announcement
UVU Division of Planning, Budget, and Finance
