Where They Are Now: Emily Baisden

Being a student worker for CWRTP’s Parenting: It’s a Life (PIAL) program can open doors in the futures of ISU students. PIAL’s curriculum is designed to teach life skills-especially the realities of becoming a parent-to middle and high school students, but developing and delivering the curriculum gives college students a chance to expand their skillset and confidence. Former PIAL team member Emily Baisden experienced this first-hand.

Emily is now an Accredited Financial Counselor® working as a Personal Financial Counselor on a Marine Corps installation in North Carolina. With a passion for financial well-being, she thoroughly enjoyed researching topics and resources to teach key financial skills to teens via PIAL’s financial education modules. She counts her research among the most meaningful experiences with PIAL, as well as working with her teammates.

Emily credits her experience with PIAL with her confidence in public speaking and her ability to elicit participation from an audience. Her knowledge of outreach and education was accelerated during her time presenting the PIAL curriculum to classes, which pushed her out of her comfort zone.

Speaking to current and upcoming PIAL student workers, Emily says, “Early in your studies and career, say yes to as many new opportunities as you are able until you feel saturated in your vision of where you want to go and what you want to do.  Until you get out of your comfort zone - whether that’s public speaking, taking the lead on a meeting, or learning other managerial skills perhaps you thought you’d never feel comfortable acquiring - you’ll never know what paths might lead you toward your aspirations.”

Emily wants students to learn how to prioritize and to say no to opportunities that don’t sound fulfilling because it will help them to know they’re truly doing what they love. However, she wants them to keep open minds for when it might be time to try something new.

During a research seminar, Emily attended at ISU, a research couple said, “When you look back on your career, everything is linear, but in the moment, it looks like a bunch of zig-zags along your path.” This quote stuck out to Emily, and is advice she would like other students to have.

Emily’s path has been full of learning, growth, lessons learned, and opportunities seized. Her time with PIAL gave her a leg up and chances to improve herself. She hopes it will do the same for many more ISU students to come.