New Canaan CARES Leadership Challenge program, having almost finished its thirteenth year of instruction, graduated a class of 22 high school students on Wednesday, Jan. 7th.
New Canaan CARES Leadership Challenge program graduated 22 in 2015. Contributed
For those unfamiliar with the course, Leadership students are required to attend 45 hours of after-school curriculum training where NC CARES staff work with them on important skills such as organization, time management, public speaking, goal-setting, and offering and receiving constructive criticism.
Students are then assigned to teams and are expected to complete 15 hours of community service on projects working with youth or assisting the elderly. Projects are intentionally assigned to place students outside of their comfort zones and students are encouraged to “face their fears and overcome their reservations.”
These service learning projects allow students to engage in drama, teaching, creating multi-media public service announcements and other new activities.
Adult mentors from the community are assigned to support each group as they develop and execute their project. Since its founding, the program has had over 800 graduates, all of which became responsible, community-conscious adults who are equipped with the skills to tackle all of life’s challenges.
At the graduation ceremony, students took turns addressing the audience to reflect on their leadership journey.
While all had written something prior to speaking, most set down their papers and honestly addressed the audience. They openly discussed their motivations for joining, which included parental pressure, curiosity, college applications and public speaking training.
The teams also recounted the hurdles they faced juggling group schedules, resolving conflicts and dealing with unanticipated circumstances during the service projects. Finally, each student expressed the rewards he or she reaped by participating in the program, which included increased self confidence, improved problem-solving and public speaking skills, new friendships and pride.
New Canaan Cares’ Leadership Challenge offers students an excellent hands-on opportunity to learn about their own potential and prepare themselves for the challenges they will face in the future, whether it’s social pressures like drinking or difficult life transitions.
In addition to all of the valuable experiences described above, it seemed clear that this eclectic and diverse group of teens, who admittedly entered into the program with preconceptions about it and each other, finished with genuine respect and tolerance for their differences, strengths and weaknesses.
All those who attended the graduation were in awe of the students that spoke. One attendee said, “Can I hire those kids to teach my kids, or better yet, could they come to work at my office?” Another remarked, “I never dreamed that my child could be so well-spoken.”
This Semester’s Student Leadership Projects Included:
KidPOWER – Grades 3-4: Caroline Budd, Nathaniel Essigs, Fredericka Trahanas, Alexander Welsh
- Using crafts, charades, interactive games and a minute-to-win-it challenge circuit, these high school mentors developed a series of 5 after-school workshops to engage elementary school youth and strengthen their confidence, problem-solving and interpersonal skills.
Mentoring Through Drama – 7th Grade: Finn Brannan, Allison Fitzpatrick, John Norton, Abhinov Pal, Matthew Schlegel, Natalia Tomczak
- This team focused on the theme of “What does it mean to be an everyday hero?” With this in mind, students wrote, directed, and performed 6 skits expressing ways that everybody can be an everyday hero. These skits were performed for 7th grade students and included the topics of exclusion, accepting ourselves and other, and perseverance. Leadership students truly connected with the 7th graders by sharing their own experiences and inviting the audience of younger students to participate in sharing theirs as well.
Elder Buddies: Kavya Dagli, Austin Leopold, Scott Luntz, Sarah Jane O’Connor
- This team planned and executed a weekly series of afternoon, evening and weekend socialization groups, including Game Show Night, International Night, Thanksgiving and more. All events were an effort to build companionship and a sense of community among the residents at School House Apartments, a subsidized residential facility serving elders in New Canaan.
Community Service Ambassadors – 5th and 6th Grades: Rachel Beyer, Charlotte Pratt, John Serena
- This team mentored a group of middle school students after school, specifically focusing on their confidence, communication, and character. High School leaders planned high energy team building and problem solving activities to empower middle school mentees with the skills to become mentors themselves to a group of special needs students.
Leadership Coalition: Trevor DeGhenghi, Chase Jansen, Katherine Kurz, Kameron Ong, Natalie Spruck
- This team developed a plan of action to attack the daunting challenge of underage drinking and high-risk behaviors among youth in our community. Projects included a teen survey about the stressors that teens face and what adults can do to help, “man on the street” interviews with adults, creation of a PSA (see below), and meetings with high school leadership and parent groups regarding youth societal pressures.
All New Canaan CARES Leadership Challenge students were nominated to be a part of the program by teachers, peers, or self-nomination. For more information on New Canaan CARES or the Leadership Challenge program, please visit www.newcanaanCARES.org.
CARES would like to especially thank our adult mentors, Jonathan Adams, Samantha Hernandez, Jake Kircher, Meghan Rolla and Julia Willman. These mentors selflessly devoted hours to the success of this semester’s graduates. The Leadership Challenge is provided Free-of-Charge to all participants, and all students from New Canaan public and private schools are invited to apply. The cost to CARES is approximately $700.00 per student to conduct this Award-Winning Program each season. Please consider making a tax-deductible contribution for the next generation of youth leaders.
If a student would like to nominate his or herself for this spring’s program or if you have a student you would like to recommend, email Meg Domino at mdomino@newcanaancares.org. Our Spring Session begins March 2015 7:00 – 8:30 pm.