Turning Confidence Into Leadership, One Bake at a Time

Leah Schneyer-VanZile walks into a competition kitchen the same way she walks into a room full of strangers: with calm confidence, shoulders back and a clear sense of purpose.  

When she first stepped forward and announced – without hesitation – that she wanted to compete in commercial baking, she wasn’t posturing or showing off. She was simply stating a fact. This was where she belonged, and she was ready.

That confidence has been hard-earned. Long before medals, speeches or state officer titles, Schneyer-VanZile was a 10-year-old who knew she wanted to be a baker. Touring Minuteman Regional Technical High School in Lexington, she saw the culinary kitchen and felt an immediate certainty: This is it. By the second week of her freshman year, when a SkillsUSA chapter president showed photos of students standing on stage with medals, Schneyer-VanZile didn’t wonder if she would be one of them. She thought, That’s going to be me.

What she didn’t know yet was that SkillsUSA doesn’t usually work on freshman timelines. When Schneyer-VanZile approached her advisors and declared her intention to compete in commercial baking, she was told – gently, but firmly – that she would need to wait. Most students would have nodded and stepped back. Schneyer-VanZile recalibrated.

She immersed herself. She became a chapter officer, attended leadership conferences and started preparing anyway. Over that February break, entirely on her own, she studied a commercial baking textbook cover to cover. She earned her OSHA certification a year earlier than her peers. She studied not to win, but to learn – treating the district test as “research” so she’d be ready later.

Then something unexpected happened. Schneyer-VanZile didn’t just do well. She won first place on the District 3 commercial baking exam.

And she went on to the state competition as a freshman, completing a six-hour baking marathon: chocolate chip cookies, multiple breads, decorated cakes, danishes and pies, all in an unfamiliar kitchen with equipment she’d never used before. She finished fifth in the state, surrounded by competitors several years older. The experience was physically exhausting and emotionally transformative.

“I went in with no expectation of succeeding,” Schneyer-VanZile recalls. “I just thought maybe I could try.” That willingness – to try before being invited – became a defining trait. 

The confidence she gained didn’t stay in the kitchen. At a fall State Leadership Conference her sophomore year, Schneyer-VanZile watched a former state officer deliver a keynote address with composure and command. Something clicked. She realized leadership could be another craft – one built on preparation, authenticity and connection. Running for state office meant giving up competition for a time, but Schneyer-VanZile trusted herself to choose the harder path.

As a sophomore, Schneyer-VanZile was elected to the Massachusetts SkillsUSA state officer team, becoming the first from her school in a decade and crediting the support of her classmates for that success. Later that summer, her peers selected her as Western Region vice president, a role that made her directly responsible for representing half the state. For Schneyer-VanZile, leadership wasn’t about visibility; it was about noticing the student sitting alone and choosing to sit beside them. It was about doing for others what someone once did for her.

Her junior year brought a harder lesson in finding balance. Between school, leadership responsibilities and travel – including meetings with policymakers in Washington, D.C. – the workload was relentless, particularly coupled with her continuing involvement with the global touring Boston City Singers. Schneyer-VanZile wrestled with how to be both relatable and authoritative, authentic and professional. When she chose to run again, it was with intention and growth.

This time, her peers elected her president of SkillsUSA Massachusetts.

The moment was overwhelming – not because of the title, but because of the trust behind it. As president, Schneyer-VanZile leads with what she calls servant leadership. Her focus is not on her own platform, but on representing the voices of 40,000 students – whether that means speaking with lawmakers, guiding her officer team or making sure individual students feel seen.

Meanwhile, she’s still a student. Through her school’s co-op program, Schneyer-VanZile works at Silver Whisk Bakery and Chocolatier, learning gourmet chocolate production – an opportunity she credits directly to the professional skills SkillsUSA taught her. She showed up early, dressed professionally, resume in hand. It mattered.

Though baking remains close to her heart, Schneyer-VanZile’s future is deliberately interdisciplinary. She plans to pursue a bachelor’s degree in cultural or international studies –  possibly in Canada, where she was born and holds dual citizenship – before earning formal pastry training in French patisserie. It’s an unconventional path, but Schneyer-VanZile has never followed the expected route.

Along the way, she’s challenged stereotypes about career and technical education – especially for high-achieving students and young women in the trades. While she was questioned for the choice, she knows she’s taking the right journey with intention, rigor and heart.