March 27, 2014 Dear Portfolio Committee, I am honored to write this letter of promise for Sophie Boyer.

I have had opportunity to get to know Sophie as a classmate, fellow intern, and friend. Over the course of the SDA program, I have seen Sophies growth into a confident student development professional. Some qualities that stand out about Sophie are her organization and leadership skills. When working with Sophie in class or on a project, I knew I could count on her to keep the group on track, motivated, and organized. I also had the chance to intern with Sophie at Cascadia Community College over Summer 2013. That summer, there were four of us interning at Cascadia. Sophie used her leadership, organization, and communication skills to compile our individual schedules to create a master calendar for our site supervisor. She also took the lead on creating and updating a carpool schedule to help to keep us organized. Sophies leadership has also been evident in her role as a co-editor of the MAGIS journal. Sophie also possesses excellent communication skills and a wonderful sense of humor. When presenting to a group, she is a natural and engaging public speaker. In one-on-one conversation, Sophie maintains the perfect balance of professionalism and genuine care. I also value the sense of humor and warm, caring demeanor Sophie has brought to the SDA program. It was these qualities that initially made me want to get to know Sophie and it is why I enjoy her company and appreciate her as a friend and colleague. I have also been very impressed with Sophies ability to be flexible and adaptable in the face of adversity. In her internship at Cascadia, Sophie had to be very flexible with her work plan due to staff changes in the Disability Support Services department. However, she was very willing to make any changes necessary and make a great experience out of a situation that could have been challenging. In this situation, she also demonstrated great skill in collaboration by engaging with various professionals at Cascadia to accomplish her work plan goals. Similarly, Sophie has had the courage to decide that she wants to pursue a path that is non-traditional for graduates of the SDA program. As she decided to pursue advancement as a functional area, Sophie has put in the extra effort make that career move possible. She created her own internship experience with University Advancement at Seattle University. In addition, she has done extensive networking and informational interviewing to learn more about the field and make connections with local professionals. It took great courage for Sophie to decide she wanted to move away from advising and to explore a new area. However, I know that with her tremendous skill set and self-motivated nature, she will excel in her chosen career path. I know that Sophie will find great success in her personal and professional journey and that she will be an asset to any higher education institution. I am excited to see her next steps as she completes the SDA program and know that she will continue to lead with great confidence and ability. Sincerely,

Evinn Hickey M.Ed. Candidate, Student Development Administration, Seattle University