Local High School Students Attend Leadership Conference

by Jonathan Weaver

Secondary students from Kittanning and West Shamokin High Schools, as well as Lenape Technical School, attended the Youth Leadership Conference at Indiana University of Pennsylvania Wednesday.

The Youth Leadership Conference has been coordinated by the Armstrong Indiana Clarion Drug and Alcohol Commission for the past three years, according to Deputy Director Carrie Bence said. She said about 100 students attended Wednesday.

“In the very beginning, we talked about ‘What is a leader?’ and ‘What are the characteristics of a leader?’ We had some breakout sessions in the afternoon, and the ROTC from IUP did some team-building skills,” Bence said. “We (even) had a yoga instructor there to teach some de-stressing techniques.

“The whole premise of the day was to teach them skills that they can take back and share with the entire student body.”

An agent from the Attorney General’s office discussed cyber bullying, a representative from Pennsylvania Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) reviewed distracted driving and the Indiana County Sheriff’s Office conducted a mock sobriety checkpoint

Other breakout sessions revolved around marijuana, gambling prevention and e-cigarettes. Students were able to make additional suggestions for next year’s conference.

Bence said organizers knew some of the students based on their involvement in other activities or if they attended the Pennsylvania SADD conference at Seven Springs in November.

About a dozen Kittanning Senior High students attended the conference, under the supervision of Spanish Teacher Janice Barnhart.

Barnhart took a mix of ninth, tenth and eleventh grade students to enable students to take the skills they learned with them to the new Armstrong High School this Fall. The students also take Spanish classes.
“I thought it would be easier for me to know who to take based on having interaction with them in class, and these are all students I know had some good leadership potential,” Barnhart said.

Barnhart said some of the students are also involved in school sports, Student Council or Key Club.

“They are leaders in other activities as well as in the classroom,” Barnhart said.

Barnhart specifically remembered the cyber bullying presentation and the statistic that only one in 10 people tell someone if they are bullied.

West Shamokin Junior/Senior High students were accompanied to the conference by SADD Advisor and Spanish Teacher Jennifer Montero.

Ford City High students attended a similar leadership workshop in the fall.

Students were able to attend the conference for free. Activities were provided through the commission’s Drug Free Communities grant and the Gambling Prevention and Education grant, and even transportation and substitute teachers were provided to participating school districts.

“We try to make it as easy as possible for the schools so the kids can participate,” Bence said.