Ambitious Undergrads Aim for Great Heights
by Kate McCann

Omar Ochoa Master Mentor

As a freshman, Omar Ochoa may have used his older brother to help acclimate to the large student population at The University of Texas at Austin, college academic demands and living in Austin. But now that he’s “the old guy on campus,” he has taken on the guiding role himself.

Ochoa, the senior accounting major and Business Honors Program student, is the 2005-2006 Student Government President. But this post is only one of many leadership roles he has held during a college career marked by eagerness to help other UT Austin students.

“I welcome my role as a mentor,” he says. “I really want to be a resource for people to show them how to give back to the university. I wouldn’t be here without being helped out along the way; and, in turn, I want to help others.”

Ochoa, taking a break from his suit and tie in a comfortable shirt and jeans, attributes much of his leadership ability to his three years working with the Multicultural Information Center on campus. “My involvement with the MIC was key in my leadership training,” he says. “They did so much to support me, allowing me to plan big events and access top administrators to discuss issues that were important to us.”

During his freshman year, he says, he stumbled into the MIC office and—in typical overachiever style—applied for a director’s position. While Ochoa didn’t get the job, the center created a position for him as Student Government liaison. He attended SG meetings and reported on relevant issues.

“My initial involvement as a liaison to SG helped encourage me to run for a two-year ‘at large’ position,” he says. “I ended up being the top vote-getter out of eight candidates and decided then that I could be president.”

During his academic years, he found a strong support group within the McCombs School, laughing that he and his BHP peers are like a second family to each other. “My academic advisors and friends in BHP were my biggest supports in the campaign. They were the ones wearing my T-shirts and putting up campaign posters,” Ochoa says.

Besides supporting him politically, he notes that his McCombs education has put him in contact with the best professors, small classes and people who are 100 percent go-getters and great contacts for the future.

“Business students are so different,” he says. “Group work teaches you to work well in teams, and the competitive nature drives students to do their best.”

McCombs’ culture of collaboration balanced by a healthy dose of ambition led Ochoa to choose UT Austin over Ivy League institutions. “Coming to UT was a decision that entailed looking at both the Business Honors and Accounting programs,” says Ochoa. “I knew how great they were from my experience the summer before in the LEAD program, which opened my eyes to McCombs. It was an obvious decision.”

The Leadership Education and Development (LEAD) program invites minority high school students to the university to attend an elite business program during the summer. During Ochoa’s visit, he interacted with McCombs professors and businessmen from around the city.

Hailing from Edinburg, Tex., a small town in the valley known for the Tejano Walk of Fame and the World Birding Center, Ochoa grew up looking to his parents as mentors. His father, Joe, put himself through college at UT Austin and went on to become a pharmacist and businessman. His mother, Lydia, studied accounting at UT-Pan American. Working together, they opened mom-and-pop pharmacy shops all around Edinburg.

Ochoa’s political guidance came from his father, who once served as mayor of the town and as a member of the school board. He recalls his diaper days when he was a campaigning toddler wearing “vote for Joe” t-shirts.

After graduation in May 2007, Ochoa plans to attend law school at UT Austin. While he doesn’t necessarily see himself as either a lawyer or accountant, he plans to combine his knowledge of the two subjects in cultivating his career.

“I’d like to be an entrepreneur in the valley dealing with international business,” Ochoa says. “I would work in both the private and public sectors in several fields, including consulting, real estate and international trade, and use my disciplined financial and law backgrounds to support some form of involvement in government.”

His years at the university have given him more perspective on what he wants out of life and direction for how to balance his education and future goals. Continuing his self-appointed role as mentor to any student seeking guidance, he passes on his recipe for success to future freshman:

1. Concentrate on GPA at least for the first year. Building your GPA is like a good credit score. It will allow you to get the scholarships and awards needed for a good foundation. Resist the temptation to get distracted.
2. Get involved on campus through any student group—it doesn’t matter which group.
3. Enjoy the people you meet within your college and outside of it. Stay connected to friends and network.

Sound advice from this student leader, who practices what he preaches.

Lauren Gilstrap Super Scholar

When Lauren Gilstrap made her plans to attend The University of Texas at Austin, she knew she had to hit the ground running. Her destination was medical school, but she first had to tackle four years of training as an undergrad. As if that weren’t enough, Gilstrap took on two extra majors to balance her education and feed new passions: economics, health care policy, business and the creative outlet offered by liberal arts. As it turns out, the Business Honors/Plan II/pre-med senior’s diverse course of study is more complementary than you might think.

“As a Plan II student, you go at your own pace and get what you want out of each subject,” Gilstrap explains. On the other hand, “the Business Honors Program teaches you to be goal-oriented and driven. I like that I can draw from both.”

Gilstrap gained political and health care policy experience as an intern during the 78th Legislative session in the spring of 2003 while she concurrently worked at the UT School of Public Health. As the Health and Human Services assistant for Sen. Eliot Shapleigh (D-El Paso), she saw the “nuts and bolts” of senatorial work—juggling lots of projects and making connections whenever possible. She concentrated on tobacco industry research while facilitating a relationship between the School of Public Health and the legislature. During the 79th Legislative session this past spring, she worked for Sen. Judith Zaffirini (D-Laredo), contributing to a bill on expanding telemedicine, a benefit that brings the expertise of big-city specialists into rural communities using electronic means such as videoconferencing.

She dedicates her “extra time” to the Orange Jackets, Student Government, the Senate of College Councils, honors and pre-med organizations, and volunteering with Brackenridge Hospital and the Children’s Hospital of Austin. Clearly, Gilstrap thrives on maintaining a full schedule.

“It’s about finding a balance inside and outside the classroom,” she says. “To be happy you need intellectual stimulation but also all of those other extracurricular activities and hobbies.”

As a business honors student, Gilstrap says she has learned “real-world skills” for interacting with professionals and peers. “From my education at the business school I have learned how to act in a multitude of situations,” she says. “The business school forces you to work effectively and efficiently with others,” which led Gilstrap to realize that “great things are not accomplished alone, and with others you can find a solution even to a seemingly unsolvable problem.”

Gilstrap, who earned the prestigious Truman Scholarship in 2005, has benefited from the leadership and guidance of several mentors at the university, including Karen Sedatole, professor of accounting; Brent Iverson, professor of chemistry and biochemistry; Alexandra Wettlaufer, professor of French and Italian; visiting professor and former Texas Gov. Ann Richards; and Liberal Arts Honors Director Larry Carver. But even with all her achievements, she doesn’t feel ready to mentor others quite yet.

“I haven’t accomplished all that much,” she says modestly. “In life you are never just a mentor or mentee, but you are always learning from others who have gone before you and then walking into their shoes.”

Before she enters medical school, Gilstrap may spend a year or more in Great Britain studying health care policy—she is up for both the Rhodes and Marshall Scholarships. This additional education and experience will help her integrate the seemingly divergent fields.

“I came to the university thinking ‘medicine,’ mostly because of my experience with sophomore biology [in high school],” she says. “But I like the idea of not being a typical doctor, and I hope to someday do health care policy or manage a hospital, which is where my business education comes in.”

In the future, Gilstrap plans to use her medical, political and economical experience to bridge the gaps between three professions. “Doctors, politicians and economists can’t talk to each other,” she says. “I want to act as the translator, helping find solutions from the chaos and using debate to find what works. Ultimately that array of backgrounds will help me interact with all people and be able to identify and relate to them.”

This attitude of versatility can be traced back to her family—mother and best friend, Sherry, brother Stephen, and particularly her father, Rodney, whom she calls her hero. He served as a district judge and attorney.

“My father is as comfortable spending time fishing on the lake as he is arguing in front of a district court,” Gilstrap says. “The greatest compliment I receive is when people tell me I’m just like my dad.”

Even as Gilstrap remains close to her family and small-town upbringing, she has made the most of what this large university has to offer. She’s on the verge of stepping into the vast world beyond college, and she has no plans to stop until she’s reached her goals.

“In the way that my family taught me values, morals and gave me roots, the university and the business school have given me wings.”
 

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