For University of Baltimore member Rebekah Opher, leadership is inseparable from empathy.
Recently, she had the opportunity to ask Oprah Winfrey a question during a Speaker Broadcast, and she touched on servant leadership, asking, “What guidance would you give in helping more people take ownership and lead with a spirit of service?” Oprah’s answer was inspiring and enlightening, offering encouragement for those striving to lead with heart.
In true servant-leader fashion, Opher put the gift card money she received for asking her question towards her community, purchasing hand warmers and hand sanitizer for the unhoused population she supports through Aunt Beck’s Place, an organization she founded to help instill real, meaningful change in her community, or, in her own words, “to grow stronger communal ties over Sunday dinner.”
Founding Aunt Beck’s Place while still an undergraduate required intention, strategy, and other important leadership skills.
“Time management and public speaking, along with advocacy for others, helped me start my social organization while in undergrad, and it has continued to help me talk to diverse populations to help me help others,” Opher says.
Her commitment to service is rooted in personal history. Having faced food and housing insecurity herself, she carries a profound understanding of this issue and an equally profound drive to ensure others don’t face their challenges alone.
A piece of advice from one of her professors continues to guide her. “My professor Dr. Dawnsha told me that we go through tough times so we can find our purpose in life,” she says. “I struggled with food and housing insecurity most of my adult life. Knowing those struggles, I know how to show up consistently for others.”
Opher draws inspiration from figures who embody drive and authenticity. She names Michelle Obama as the leader she admires.
“She is unapologetically herself,” Opher says. “Brilliant, supportive, articulate, caring, and a hard worker. Her stories of resilience in spite of life’s hardships are inspiring.”
Those qualities are ones Opher strives to cultivate in her own life. They also guide her long-term goals. She plans to start law school in the fall of 2026 and ultimately become either a federal judge or an international human rights advocate, roles that would allow her to expand her impact on underserved populations.
Her next step is already underway. “My next goal is to get admitted into law school,” she says. “I have already taken my LSAT and submitted applications. Now, I'm waiting.”
And as a law student, it’s all about balancing workload with giving back. “As a law student, I hope to remain engaged with the community and increase my reach by collaborating with other organizations,” she says.
Opher’s definition of leadership is shaped by her academic discipline, her lived experience, and her commitment to justice, with a realistic approach to getting things done.
“Leadership means assessing the situation and engaging with stakeholders to develop an actionable and sustainable plan,” she says. “It means teaching others how to trust themselves, advocate for themselves and others, and speak truth to power.”
Her time in the NSLS has helped her embrace her identity as a leader. “Through the network of incredible servant leaders, [the NSLS] showed me that I can be uniquely me and be a role model for others to follow.”
This belief (that leadership emerges when people bring their most authentic selves to the work) drives Opher forward as she prepares for the next stage of her leadership journey.
For those striving to become stronger leaders, Opher emphasizes how your success ultimately comes down to you.
“Don't wait for someone else,” she says. “Trust yourself and lead ethically with empathy.”
Her words echo the question she asked Oprah about taking ownership of one’s actions with an eye toward serving others. She already brings this mentality into everything she does, and with a law degree, she will be able to expand her reach that much more.
Meet Anna Williams next, another NSLS member who turned to the legal system to create meaningful change, turning a SMART goal into Anna’s Law.