As a scientist, bioinformatician and lifelong learner, Rooksie Noorai gathers every piece of information before taking action.
Currently, Noorai is a senior high-performance computing facilitator on Clemson’s Research Computing and Data team within CCIT.
When she joined CU Grow, Clemson’s staff development program, she was looking for an opportunity to sharpen her leadership skills. At the time, she had stepped into a new supervisory role in her previous position as the assistant director of bioinformatics in Clemson’s Genomics and Bioinformatics Facility.
Instead, she found herself discovering something much more personal.
“I went in to learn leadership,” said Noorai, “But the program really homed in on specific things I needed to grow in, and it really made me flourish.”
Through leadership assessments, coaching and conversations with classmates across the University, Noorai began recognizing habits she had never questioned. Through intentional opportunities built into CU Grow, she was able to identify ways to address those habits and stretch her skills.
During her 12-month program, which included an individual development plan, Noorai read a story from the book Failing Forward: Turning Mistakes into Stepping Stones for Success by John C. Maxwell. The story detailed a pottery class with two assignments: create one perfect pot or make as many pots as possible.
By the end of the semester, the students who had produced the most pottery had also created the best pottery.
The narrative made an impact, and for Noorai, everything clicked.
“It was like a light bulb went off,” she said. “I can do one thing really well or I can just keep trying everything. Keep trying and keep doing. Is it going to be perfect? No. But maybe the next thing will be.”
The story, and her experiences through CU Grow, changed how she approached leadership and her role at Clemson. The program gave her the resources and the confidence to make thoughtful decisions with the information available, adjust when needed and stop viewing every imperfect outcome as failure.
With a new perspective on her work and an eagerness to find additional opportunities for growth, Noorai stepped into her new role in CCIT in June. There, she helps researchers across the University harness Clemson’s world-class high-performance computing resources while continuing to build the collaborative relationships she values most.
As she reflects on her time in the program, Noorai credits the program for allowing her to step out of her comfort zone, but her biggest credit goes to the foundation CU Grow builds for relationships across Clemson.
“CU Grow makes the University feel smaller,” she said. “What I learned is that we make the University better by all talking together.”
Noorai hopes other staff members will take the same chance on the CU Grow program that she did.
“If you’re willing to learn more about yourself, take the opportunity,” she said.
Applications for the 2027 CU Grow cohort are open until September 30. Clemson staff interested in learning more or applying can visit the CU Grow website.
