Getting a jump on leadership in Washington County
Alex Pompe, a sophomore at Avella High School, answers a question posed to him in a session on volunteerism with high school students Wednesday.
Deb Hopkins, executive director of Pittsburgh Cares, talks about leadership and volunteerism to ninth- and 10th-grade students from area high schools during a Youth Leadership Conference on the California University campus in Southpointe Wednesday.
Broken into small groups, students discuss leadership and jobs during a Youth Leadership Conference on the California University campus in Southpointe Wednesday. From left are Avella High School students Ryan Comfort and Rachel Sloneker and Trinity High School students Jonathan Florian and Anthony D’Orazio.
Who do you look up to?
Keyshawn Ray read the query aloud and didn’t have to ponder.
“It’s my dad,” he said confidently, unflinchingly. Keyshawn, a Canon-McMillan sophomore, explained that his father “started with nothing,” but worked diligently to become a bank executive.
“Great. You chose someone who shows leadership,” Deb Hopkins, the workshop presenter, told Keyshawn and a roomful of high school students Wednesday.
Leadership Washington County hosted its second annual Youth Leadership Conference at Southpointe. About 45 students from eight districts countywide participated in workshops, breakout sessions and discussions focusing on problem-solving, creative thinking, communication, volunteerism and, of course, leadership.
Preparing these teens to be leaders is the overriding objective.
Ninth- through 11th-graders, accompanied by guidance counselors from their schools, congregated in California University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Innovation for the five-hour program. They came from Avella Area, California Area, Canon-McMillan, Charleroi Area, McGuffey, Peters Township, Trinity and Washington.
Two high-schoolers, Wash High sophomore Zhiere Patmon and Canon-Mac junior Kate DuCarme, also attended the inaugural event in 2014.
Business professionals supervised the workshops, with students split into two groups: one with freshmen and sophomores, the other with juniors. Hopkins, the executive director of Pittsburgh Cares, which matches 12,000-plus volunteers a year with nonprofits and schools in Allegheny County, asked the group the difference between sympathy and empathy, and more than one teen knew that empathy involved identifying with individuals’ feelings, thoughts or situations.
“If you get anything out of leadership, it should be empathy,” she said, “To be really effective leaders, it’s important to put ourselves in a position where we feel empathy.”
Chris Blaine, director of marketing and communications of the Washington Wild Things, made an interesting pitch to her group of 11th-graders. She briefed them on the team’s history – major success, on the field and at the ticket booth, in the initial years, followed by down times on both fronts. She touted the relatively low cost of attending a Wild Things game, but, in a region with a significant older population, younger fans have to be attracted to the product on display at Consol Energy Park.
“People your age are probably who we need to attract,” Blaine said. “I’m giving you a project: Break into groups and discuss, ‘What do you do to get young people into the park?’ “
They did, in front of a person who can easily relay their suggestions.
Though just two years old, the Youth Leadership Conference appears to be a winning initiative of Leadership Washington County. LWC is a Washington-based nonprofit formed in 1998. It has a board of directors and a list of more than 200 professionals who have “graduated” from its program.
The “class of 2015” was integral to organizing and executing this year’s high school program.
“We like to come up with a different initiative every year, but because last year’s (youth conference) was so successful, we decided to do it again,” said Katie Unger-Chipps, LWC’s executive director. “I think we’ll continue the program.”
It has the endorsement of guidance counselors who were on hand Wednesday.
“The students here realize that adults value their opinions and views,” said Marie Montecalvo of Wash High. “This is a good platform for students to express themselves,”
“There’s always talk about making the world a better place, about getting world leaders together,” said Steve Andronas of Canon-McMillan. “Here, students from different schools get together to get their communities together.”
They said the students who attended last year – Zhiere and Kate – enjoyed the experience and relished their return.
“It taught him to think,” Montecalvo said.
“Kate was praising the program to other students,” Andronas said.
Karen Rubican, his counseling colleague at Canon-Mac, said this year’s Youth Leadership Conference was bigger and better.
“We have students who view themselves as leaders, and who we, as educators, see as potential leaders,” she said, “They can practice that leadership here.”
M.E. Yancosek Gamble attended Wednesday, and not just as an LWC board member. She also is chair of Bethany College’s Business, Communications and Media Arts Department, which had a group taping the event. Each participant, she said, would get a DVD.
“We thought this would be a great opportunity to speak out,” she said. “I think it’s great that the students are proactive and learning.”
For more information, visit palwc.org.