Apr 21st, 2009
The 7th Annual Youth Leadership Conference was one of the best yet! It was the first the time the conference was hosted at the Wyndham Milwaukee Airport Hotel and Convention Center. A new larger space was needed to handle the ever increasing numbers of schools involved. Middle school-aged students from 31 schools, including 21 Milwaukee Public Schools.
Milwaukee Municipal Court Judge Derrick Mosley provided opening remarks to the conference participants. Facilitators for many of the fourteen 2009 workshops were either students or agency representatives trained to present factual, age-appropriate information to teenagers. Workshops included Peers With Impact, presented by Marshall High School students; and It’s the Law, Don’t Touch This! and Surfing with Sharks, presented by MPD officers on the dangers of Internet sexual predators and other potential hazards on My Space, Face Book or Twitter. Additional workshops included Able, But Not Ready, presented by Kendra Stevenson, a teenage mother who will discuss her personal story; You Are What You Eat, and Get Up-Get Moving, presented by Wellness and Prevention Office staff to encourage healthier lifestyles and nutrition habits among students; Managing My Benjamins, by financial planner Mark Ellison; and Learn & Serve – From Classroom to Community, in which students learned how to get involved and have an impact on community issues.
Safe & Sound Community Partners contributed to weekly planning meetings with Milwaukee Police Department District 7, District 6 and MPS Wellness and Prevention Office for several months leading up to the annual event. All staff was on call the day of the conference, setting up and welcoming over 600 youth.
The goal of the conference was to encourage young people to prepare for leadership roles in their communities through character development. Conference organizers hope the student participants will return to their schools as peer mentors and leaders. Some of the same presenters and sessions will be featured during the summer with Safe & Sound’s Safe Night events. Safe Nights are hosted at Safe Places and planned by Safe Place youth leaders. It is a great opportunity for youth to select those workshops they find interesting and enjoyed the most to bring to their friends and other youth at Safe Places.
