I did something kind of a big. Applied for a Doctorate program @ GWU's Graduate School of Education and Human Development (GSEHD)

So I applied, hope I make the cut! 

My mother is my inspiration to better myself and help others at the same time.

Back in November mom was sick, and we had discussed the subject of a doctorate and how to help organizations succeed. She said it was a great idea and she will live to see me graduate! 

So when she passed in December, it took the wind out of my sails. I started to doubt myself and put off applying to GW GSEHD Executive Leadership Program. 

Mom reached out to me (from the great beyond) and motivated me to apply --so I did. 

I thought I would share an excerpt of my Statement of Purpose that was used in my application. 

Mom and Me at Christmas (1988)

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In the 1980’s and 1990’s, my mother was a COBOL software developer. Growing up I would visit her office, and there I learned how to use Microsoft DOS and logon to bulletin board systems (BBS). From that moment, I was hooked on computers. I am Gerald (Jerry) Rhoads and have been in the Information Technology (IT) field for over 22 years. I’ve held positions with the US Government, Hewlett Packard (HP), Amazon, and I am presently with Microsoft.

During my 22-year career in IT, I have made two very important observations. First, that when individuals, teams, and organizations do not know an answer, they are inclined to say no. No becomes the culture. Second, the “Imposter” Syndrome is king, and I believe it leads to a fear of being outted as not being the “know it all”. I think this fear and lack of knowledge leads to a culture of no. To lead an organization into the 21^st century, the culture of no must give way a culture of openness, learning, and growth. It is my passion and desire to change these cultures of no.......

REMOVED BODY of LETTER as it is TLDR and pertains to the program and its professors

 ...........While in the ELP, I plan to research successful and unsuccessful technology departments and companies. The goal is to find out how the culture of no, starts. My research will be used to build a framework on what a diverse, inclusive, and successful IT organization will look like. This successful organization will promote openness, learning and growth mindsets. The framework will define how and where to enter the IT field e.g., the very basic qualifications and educational requirements for a particular job set. Additionally, the framework will define a path forward to the next IT job promotion (helpdesk to c-suite). 

As you can see, my passion is to enable organizations to implement a growth culture, which is the opposite of a culture of no. To do so, leaders must embrace lifelong learning techniques, institute a culture that embraces change and one that is not afraid to fail. Without a career path, learning and growth mindsets are moot, and the organization becomes stagnant, the culture of no and intolerance to change, rein high. I think diversity and inclusion are paramount in transforming an organization’s culture to that of openness, learning and growing. I will bring my love of learning and personal growth to add to that of my fellow cohort members. I hope to add my humanistic thoughts on leadership to the program.  My takeaway from the ELP and cohort will be an establishment of proper research techniques that identify organizational problems and are used to build a framework based on ELP curriculum that promotes openness, learning, and growth in any organization –the information technology field is just the beginning.

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