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From First-Gen Scholar to Emerging Young Professional:
Meet Shaylan Wilson
This week GlobalMindED is featuring its remarkable students. We are honored to highlight Shaylan Wilson, part of the 2023-2024 First Gen class.
Tell us about your journey.
My journey is rooted in resilience, representation, and service. I was born in Gary, Indiana raised in Fort Wayne, Indiana, now continuing my education at Colorado State University Pueblo as a first-generation college student from a low-income household. Navigating under-resourced schools and underrepresented spaces taught me to advocate not only for myself, but for others who felt overlooked. Today, I am a senior at Colorado State University Pueblo, graduating this August 2025 majoring in Psychology with minors in Media Entertainment and Cannabis Studies. My academic journey reflects the intersection of my passions: mental health, storytelling, justice, and equity.
Over the years, I’ve embraced leadership roles as President and Vice President of CSU Pueblo’s Associated Students’ Government, President of the Tau Tau chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, a Colorado Board of Governors Official Non-Voting Student Representative Member, a Mentor Collective Ambassador, and I have been given the opportunity to host, emcee, and be a keynote speaker at events for organizations such as the Pueblo NAACP chapter, the Pueblo African American Concern Organization, and CSU Pueblo’s Packfest. I’ve also been honored with several awards which include the ASG Award of Excellence Award, Champion for Diversity Award, and AKA’s Emerging Leader Award and Academic Excellence Award.
These roles and the people they’ve allowed me to serve, have grounded me in my purpose. This has led me to being accepted for the Masters of Social work at Colorado State University Pueblo expecting to graduate in August of 2027.
Professionally, I aspire to become a transformational leader in community and social work, using my background in psychology, media, and policy to uplift BIPOC and underserved communities. I plan to earn a Ph.D. and help reform institutions to promote mental health, equity, and access. Additionally, I hope to write and/or produce stories that spotlight the lived experiences of BIPOC communities and women—using storytelling as a tool for education, empathy, and systemic change.
What pivotal experiences shaped your current path?
Three transformative experiences have significantly shaped my direction. The first was stepping into the Acting President role in ASG during a time of leadership transition. It wasn’t just about a title—it was about showing up, holding space for students, and making tangible changes related to ADA access, campus equity, and representation. This has earned me the trust
in the students at CSU Pueblo where I now serve as President and as a member on the Colorado Board of Governors.
The second was my shift from Exercise Science to Psychology/Social Work & Media. For years in high school and middle school, I believed I’d become a personal trainer because I loved sports and wanted to help people. Through leadership, student advocacy, and college, I realized I was meant to help others in broader, systemic ways. That changed everything—it clarified my passion for community work, policy, and healing through education, media, and reform.
The third defining moment in my journey was becoming a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Knowing that I am a soror to women I deeply admire like Former Vice President Kamala Harris means the world to me. AKA is a powerful organization rooted in sisterhood, service, and scholarship. It has given me a true sense of belonging and pride. Being part of AKA has helped me grow as a leader and showed me the importance of collective uplift. It opens doors for young women of color to build community, develop professional skills, and step confidently into spaces we may have once been excluded from. That sisterhood has empowered me to lead with grace, purpose, and legacy.
What drives your desire to contribute and make a difference?
I am driven by lived experience of what I’ve seen and grown from. I’ve witnessed how systems often overlook or harm the very people they claim to serve, especially BIPOC and low-income communities. I’ve also seen how just one advocate, one resource, or one moment of representation can change a life. I want to be that for someone else as those who have built me up have done for me.
It’s the younger version of me: the one who didn’t know if she’d make it through college without doing sports or ever truly feel seen as a contributor to society—that keeps me going. I know how powerful it is to be heard, validated, and supported, and that is the experience I want to give to others through my future work in community leadership, policy, and media-centered advocacy.
What motivates your passions, purpose, or the work you do?
My passion is people. My purpose is rooted in service, healing, and justice. I’m especially committed to dismantling stigma around mental health and creating safe, informed spaces for communities of color. I also love blending media and advocacy—using storytelling and public speaking as tools to educate, inspire, and transform.
What fuels me daily is the belief that we can build better systems. Systems where health, safety, education, and equity are not privileges, but guarantees. I want my life’s work to amplify marginalized voices, challenge norms, and bridge gaps between people and power.
Beyond your own journey, what are your hopes for your community, generation, or people?
I hope to see a generation of leaders who are not only smart and strategic, but empathetic, inclusive, and deeply community-rooted. I want to see more Black and Brown women at the forefront, not just in positions of power, but in environments where they feel celebrated, protected, and heard.
For my community, I dream of more access to mental health care, education, economic mobility, and platforms where we can tell our stories unapologetically. I believe our generation has the power to shift an entire culture and policy by leading with truth, compassion, and collaboration. We deserve a future where equity isn’t radical, it’s expected.
What is your highest hope for our democracy?
My highest hope for our democracy isn’t just one hope—it’s a vision with many truths and dreams that are long overdue. I hope to witness the day a Black woman is voted President of the United States.
Real democracy begins by acknowledging the histories and contributions of Indigenous, Black, and Brown communities, and by facing the truth of who has sustained this nation through its greatest challenges.
What role has GlobalMindED played in your personal, academic, or professional journey?
The 2023-2024 GlobalMindED conferences in Denver were transformative. It gave me the chance to connect with other student leaders from organizations, many of whom shared similar challenges and ambitions. Those connections have lasted well beyond the conference and helped me see that I’m not alone in this work and our generation is building something powerful together.
GlobalMindED gave me the confidence to know that I belong in these high-impact spaces. It was affirming to be in a room where diversity was embraced, not just tolerated. The conference expanded my network, sharpened my public speaking skills, and reminded me that my story and my leadership matter. Being part of GlobalMindED has fueled my drive to continue advocating for access and equity on campus and beyond.
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