STUDENT LEADERSHIP GROWS HERE!

My oldest daughter is preparing to make the transition from a small school grade 8 class to a large high school.   She is excited, but a bit apprehensive as well.   We were invited to a Grade 9 welcome night, which we attended with great enthusiasm.  There was the expected teacher-lead portion of the tour where each teacher playfully boasted that he or she had the best job in the school, provided encouragement and showed school spirit.  But then.....

Something magical happened!  Silently, two groups of school t-shirt wearing students surrounded our group, standing at first, then falling to one knee in a perfectly choreographed entrance.  The suspense grew as they knelt there, unexplained.  Then, the teacher announced that THESE were our student peer leaders.  THEY were here to make our tour well organized and informative.  THEY were going to tell us what OUR school community was all about.  THEY were also here to make sure that every grade 8 was part of a strong and supportive school community.  It was BEAUTIFUL!

The students lead the vast majority of the event.  They were knowledgable, polished and professional... all 30 of them.  As I spoke with the principal, I couldn't contain my amazement.  She explained to me that this was the capstone project of a class they were taking.  Each teenager had to apply to get into the class and was held to a high standard on the basis that student leadership was important, necessary and impactful.  These youth had to believe that they could make a difference, or they would not be accepted into the program. 

Neslon Mandella once said: "The youth of today are the leaders of tomorrow".   Isn't this so true?

Cultivating leaders of tomorrow is some of the most important work we can do.  How to be innovative in this goal will be a never-ending pursuit.  It will need to change with the times.  It will need to value experience over outcome.

You knew a question would follow.... didn't you?

How do we engage those students who are not "joiners" so that they too can experience leadership and self-leadership?

In what ways does youth leadership change when we consider the concept at the local level versus a global level?

How could peer pressure be overcome, or even leveraged for the development of leadership qualities within our youth?