A senior from Omaha, Greg Hermosillo credits the William H. Thompson Scholars Learning Community for helping him grow as a leader around campus, foster connections between fellow scholars and earn a unique internship opportunity as a legal translator.

For Hermosillo, being an effective leader is all about making connections.

As a Thompson Scholars mentor and professional staff member, staff assistant for Campus Rec, intramural ref and — recently — as a legal translator for an Omaha law firm, the political science major stretches his strengths by making connections across different organizations.

“I try and lead by bringing all my positions together,” Hermosillo said. “I think a big part of leadership is just about making connections. I get a great feeling from seeing our WHT Scholars around campus and going, ‘Hey, there’s Greg!’”

A first-gen student, Greg came to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln as a Susan T. Buffett Scholar who, when they arrival at Nebraska U, become part of the WHT Learning Community that supports and connects these scholars from diverse backgrounds.

Hermosillo began helping new scholars acclimate to the university as a mentor his junior year.

“Mentors help you get adjusted to your first year, making sure they’re always a phone call or text away to answer questions,” Hermosillo said. “Also, the amazing professional support staff at WHT keep you on track with grades, host monthly meetings and organize social events.”

Now a senior, Hermosillo has graduated to support staff with the Thompson Scholars, mentoring the mentors on how to facilitate and build outstanding graduates.

“We like to be engaged and hold scholars to a high standard — we want our scholars to have a sense of pride and feel like they have a whole team behind them,” Hermosillo said.

The Thompson Scholars’ team mentality recently led Hermosillo to an exceptional professional opportunity working as a legal translator at an Omaha law firm. In this role, Greg had responsibilities far beyond the purview of a traditional internship.

“I was sharing my interest in law with one of our pro staff, and she connected me with a firm in Omaha looking for a temporary translator,” he explains.

Knowing his strengths as a communicator, this staff member vouched for Hermosillo’s skillset and helped land him the job.

“It wasn’t something you’d find on LinkedIn or anything, it was just the personal connections and communication that got me there.”