Aeriel Niccum | Staff Reporter
Posted June 20, 2014; 9:00 a.m.

A dozen high school students participated in the fifth annual Lion’s Pride Youth Leadership Summit last week, according to Non-Profit Administration department chair Julie Turner.

The Summit, according to the application, is designed to “to assist high school students who possess an affinity for helping others and who demonstrate exceptional leadership skills to develop a deeper understanding of their roles in social change and to connect them to specific opportunities to act in service to others.”

Students this year had the opportunity to learn about the four corners of leadership leaders, leadership behaviors and leaders as followers, create their own service project, put their service into action at four local non-profit organizations and volunteer their time at the St. Charles Crisis Nursery, according to the itinerary.

Turner feels the program is important in many ways.

“[The program] really gets students thinking about being intentional with service,” said Turner. “[It also] helps develop sensitivity and empathy towards those in need [and] helps validate the business of nonprofit management. We have also gained majors as a result.”

Next year Turner hopes the program will be more hands on and that there will be more activities, including simulations and potentially bringing in a nationally renowned author to speak. Within the next five years Turner said she hopes the program will move beyond three days and grow to 25 participants.

Anyone interested in future Youth Leadership Summit programming or the Non-Profit Administration program can contact Turner via phone at 636 949 4652 or email at [email protected].