Name: Maggie Thompson
Job Title: Project Evaluator
Where do you hail from:
Born and raised in Lincoln, Nebraska
What is it they say you do:
I work on two federally-funded research projects here at CCFL: I work as a Center Evaluator for the QIC-AG (Quality Improvement Center on Adoption & Guardianship) project and as a Workforce Specialist for the QIC-WD (Quality Improvement Center on Workforce Development) project.
Who are your early influences/who inspired you most:
Martin Luther King has always been a huge inspiration in my life and my mother instilled his teachings in me from a young age. My father’s greatest inspiration, Muhammad Ali, also became one of mine. These heroes inspired me to dream bigger, work harder, and achieve more.
What has been your greatest source of career satisfaction/ proudest achievement:
My proudest achievement so far has been getting my Master’s degree and working to reverse the cycle of poverty in my family. My mother has an eighth grade education, my father has a twelfth grade education, and I’m the first in my family to go to college.
What has been an unexpected detour/ greatest frustration/disappointment:
The hardest thing I’ve encountered so far has been the loss of my parents. My mother passed away during my last semester of graduate school and my father passed away while I was on my honeymoon.
What is your passion/what you are drawn to/what motivates you/where do you hope to be in five years:
Everything I do is motivated by the desire to provide the best possible example for my children. In five years I hope to still be here at CCFL, doing cool research (hopefully with a PhD!).
Family life/hobbies /community involvement:
My wonderful family keeps me busy running kids to various activities. When we’re not watching our kids do gymnastics, soccer, basketball, or swimming, my husband and I enjoy traveling, cooking, and mixed martial arts. As a family, we are very active in the Autism Family Network of Lincoln.
The quotation I live my life by is......I have two:
“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”
-Martin Luther King
“If my mind can conceive it, if my heart can believe it, then I can achieve it.”
-Muhammad Ali