Leadership skills key to student’s path to regent

June 10, 2024 — DENTON — During her junior year at Texas Woman’s, it seemed as if Maya Landgrebe had discovered a superpower of doubling herself. She seemingly appeared just about everywhere on the Denton campus.

She could be found holding meetings at various residence halls as RHA president, facilitating group activities at Hubbard Hall as Orientation Team Lead or planting violets at the Dr. Bettye Myers Butterfly Garden as Alternative Spring Break leader. She was also logging hours as a Pioneers Service Scholar on and off campus. And, that was on top of being a full-time student with two part-time jobs. 

There was always a smile on her face but, internally, Landgrebe was struggling with burn out. She started to think about not coming back as a RHA president. She thought about quitting everything. 

People close to Landgrebe sat her down and helped her realize being a leader isn’t doing everything. It is leading. 

“I was taking on a lot and I was trying to fix it because I didn’t want to put it on anyone else,” Landgrebe said. “This past year, I learned that the whole purpose of a team and building leaders around you is to empower them to be able to do the same things you are. And that was the turning point.”

Landgrebe returned for a second and rewarding year as RHA president and graduated with an exercise science/pre-occupational therapy degree. With renewed energy, Landgrebe decided to stay on at TWU to pursue an OT doctoral degree. She also decided to take on a new leadership role.  

One of the highest student positions at Texas Woman’s. 

“I have always had in my mind that I wanted to be student regent,” Landgrebe said. “I always have enjoyed being a leader and kinda getting up to that highest level of leadership to really be able to support the students and everything.”

On June 1, Landgrebe became TWU’s newest student regent, following the expired term of her predecessor, Jianna Covarelli. Landgrebe’s term expires May 31, 2025. Although student regents do not vote, they serve as a voice for students on the Denton, Dallas and Houston campuses to the TWU System Board of Regents and represent TWU at the highest levels within Texas higher education. 

“I’m a little intimidated,” Landgrebe said. “Jianna, Dawna-Diamond Tyson and all the prior regents that I’ve watched growing up as a TWU student have left really big shoes to fill, and I think did a really incredible job supporting not only our students but TWU in general. I definitely think the relationships I have built and the leadership experiences I’ve had have really grown me to thrive in this position.”

Landgrebe is now a TWU Houston student and thinks she might be the first student regent from the Houston campus. The Alvin native attended a TWU Houston open house and immediately thought the campus was the place at which she needed to be. 

“I’m truly excited to be a Houston student,” Landgrebe said. “My goal as regent is really promoting that growth and vision of what TWU Houston is. Within the first few minutes of me being on that campus, I realized how much there was to do and how many opportunities there were just being in Medical City. I’m hoping to bridge that gap and build that bridge between the campuses.”

Landgrebe’s first order of business is to build new connections on the Dallas and Houston campuses. 

“I’m hoping to have leadership coffee chats with all of the different organizations across Houston, Dallas and Denton because I want them to know who I am,” Landgrebe said.

She is quick to respond about what she wants to accomplish. 

“I think the biggest thing is affordable education,” Landgrebe. “What is nice about being in a role like this, is I do have an impact not just on TWU but on higher education in general. I really am hoping to make an impact on affordability for students, grants, funding, different things like that.” 

Landgrebe has a heart for people and wants to make an impact on those around her, whether that’s in occupational therapy, healthcare or government. She says she pushed herself to apply for student regent because she wants her peers to know they have choices. 

“Because I want our generation to be as strong as we are perceived,” Landgrebe said. “I want us to become a voice to be reckoned with. I want us to speak up in spaces and be able to say these are the problems we are facing and how we are going to fix them. Being student regent like this, that opens a lot of doors for me to make an impact on things I truly want to. This is my first step in making that change and impact I hope to leave on the world before I leave.”