Are leaders born or made?
For 17-year-old Jordan Robinson, the new student representative on the Springfield District 186 school board, leadership appears to be a combination of innate qualities and acquired skills.
“Is Jordan a born leader? Yes,” said her mom, Jessica Pope-Robinson, with a smile. “We say she was like this from the get-go. Very motivated and determined for whatever she had in her sights. Independent and resilient. And funny!”
Jordan, the youngest of five children, is a senior this fall at Springfield High School. She applied to be the Student Board representative last April after participating in the Superintendent’s Student Roundtable for two years. The roundtables are held after school twice a month at the district office.
“A group of kids come together and talk to Superintendent (Jennifer) Gill about things that they see issues with, that need to be improved and things they like,” said Jordan. “It’s an opportunity to share our views and vantage points.”
In her new position, Jordan will lead those roundtables. “I’ll direct the meetings, and we’ll plan some community events including Unity Day. The purpose of Unity Day is to bring all the high schools together and raise money for charities.”
She’ll also attend District 186 board meetings twice a month.
“Basically, during board meetings, I’ll give student input. Any students who have questions or things they think should be brought up, or concerns, they can come to me about it or to the superintendent roundtables,” she said.
Jordan’s application included an essay and recommendations from teachers. She was then interviewed by elected board members and announced as the new student representative in May.
What does she hope to accomplish? “I want more people to attend the roundtables. It has really great potential at the beginning of the year but by the end of the year it kind of breaks off,” she noted. “I’d like to start an Instagram page for it, remind people when meetings are and clear up any confusion.”
Issues she’d like the school board to address include the district’s phone, absence and dress policies, and she’ll be voicing student concerns on those. “A lot of students think those policies are too strict,” she said.
Jordan knows that conflict can arise during discussions and has her ways of dealing with that. “I like to wait it out, see where the tides turn, and share the students’ perspectives on things pertaining to us.” She also uses humor, saying, “It gets people to listen more.”
“Humor has been her mainstay in life,” added Jessica. “It’s gotten her out of a lot of stuff with her parents because she’s funny, and then we laugh.”
Jordan doesn’t have to look far to find her role models. As she gave her mom a hug, Jordan said, “Mom is my role model. She’s a rock. She kind of blazes through life. I mean, it’s hard to handle five kids!”
Jessica, who is employed at the Daughters of Union Veterans of the Civil War Museum in Springfield, said Jordan did the heavy lifting to get the position on her own. “When Jordan said she wanted to do this I said, ‘Good luck!’ I may have looked over her essay, but she never really asked for assistance. She has everything under control. She did it herself and called me and told me she got it. It was pretty awesome, and I’m very proud of her.”
Jordan also looks to her father, Jamie Robinson, for inspiration. A supervisor at County Market, Jamie suffered a stroke several years ago and is still recovering. “If I ever need motivation, I mean this guy, he’s walking again,” said Jordan. “If he can do that, I can do this.”
Jessica talked about the stress that affected the entire family. “Their dad almost died. He’s made a lot of progress. When he came home, he was in a wheelchair and now he walks without a cane.”
She said all the kids have had to be resilient. “Jordan was a freshman when that happened, so a lot of attention was taken away from her and all of them because so much attention had to go to him. They had to be a little more grown up than they would have.”
Among Jordan’s many accomplishments and activities are membership In the National Honor Society and Model U.N. and helping to produce the fall school play. She takes mainly advanced placement and honors classes. She volunteered this summer at College for Kids at Lincoln Land Community College and works weekends at Pizza Ranch, saving money for college.
“My savings account is looking pretty good,” she said. She hopes to attend University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and major in political science or public health, then possibly attend graduate school in Washington, D.C. Running for elected office is not out of the question, Jordan said.
Through volunteering, school leadership activities and working at a restaurant, she has honed skills in organizing and motivating people.
“For our student roundtable projects, I make sure everyone has a small task, so they don’t have to take on a load of work. I supervise people at work, too. I’ve learned skills like efficiency, figuring out the quickest way to do things, along with technical skills and obviously customer service. Sometimes my manager says, ‘Alright Jordan, you got this.'”
What parent wouldn’t be proud of a high-achieving student who takes on a leadership role working with elected officials for the betterment of local education? When asked what advice she might have for other parents with a child showing leadership qualities, Jessica replied, “I just love them and support them.” Then she added with a laugh, “And I feed them a lot.”
Jordan agreed. “Food is a great motivator. Mom is a great cook. When someone asks me, ‘What is your favorite restaurant?’ I say, ‘My house!'”
Lynn Whalen has a background in broadcast journalism and higher education public relations, most recently as chief communications officer at Lincoln Land Community College.
This article appears in Parent Fall 2025.
