YLDP Students Meet a Real Leader: Dr. Robert Ivany

Dr. Robert Ivany (center) with students (above) and YLDP volunteers (below).

Dr. Robert Ivany (center) with students (above) and YLDP volunteers (below).

By Haritha Jupudy
HOUSTON: I thought of the ultimate response to Dr. Robert Ivany’s question. “What makes a leader?” he asked. In my head, I had a jumble of words and sentences ready to blurt out my complex definition of a leader. It was an intricate description that probably only I out of the many people in the room would have understood.

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As the son of Hungarian refugees from World War 2 who moved to Ohio to escape the “evil empire” of communism, Dr. Ivany changed my definition of a leader. Dr. Ivany presided as the commandment of the U.S. Army War College and served as the Army Aide to President Reagan. He retired from the Army with the rank of Major General. So, where is Dr. Ivany now? He is at the University of St. Thomas. That’s right, the University of St. Thomas. Dr. Ivany became the eighth president of the University of St. Thomas and although an Army background is fairly different from a university, both require the ambitious leadership. Although Dr. Ivany uses his authority in a different way at the campus setting from his Army life, both require the qualities of a leader: a person who has faith and character. Dr. Ivany changed the ambiance in the room with his perfect definition of a leader- someone who not only has a stellar and confident personality, but also devotion.
As a high school student, sometimes my faith gets pushed to the corner, as I have college applications and after-school activities taking up my time. There’s not a day where my faith is not tested, but it gives me a greater opportunity to stay true to my own values and build my own character- the person I want to become. Dr. Ivany reminded us that our beliefs make us the leader that we want to become. Besides, if a leader does not have their own faith in hand, how can one expect them to lead others to the top?