The Community House Youth Leadership Summit  is designed to provide high school-aged students with the opportunity to enhance their leadership, academic, and social-emotional literacy skills. Each year, the Youth Leadership Summit includes workshops and presentations by Princeton University faculty and staff, as well as interactive skill building activities such as resume building, time management, goal setting, navigating diversity & leadership, and wellness & leadership. 

The 2022 Youth Leadership Summit will take place on Friday, November 11th from 9am-4pm on the Princeton University Campus.  For more information, please email [email protected] 

 

Virtual Youth Leadership Workshops

In 2020, Community House held a virtual Youth Leadership Summit with the aim of providing Community House high school students the opportunity to develop leadership skills.  Workshops form the virtual summit are available below for youth to engage in asynchronously.  

Introduction

Welcome Community House high school students, to the second annual Youth Leader Summit! This virtual, self-guided experience was designed to encourage you to explore your future and continue to develop your skills as a leader. The guide includes three main themes:

  • College Preparation
  • Planning for the Future
  • Developing Your Leadership Skills

This interactive guide is comprised of two components: (1) helpful videos provided by partners all across Princeton’s campus who wanted to share their expertise with you, and (2) instructions for three challenges, or action steps you can take toward growing as a leader right now. Email [email protected] with all three completed challenges for a special prize sent to your door.

To kick us off, Vice President for Campus Life W. Rochelle Calhoun shares a welcoming address.

Part 1: College Preparation

Applying to College in the COVID-19 Era

Applying to college can seem like a daunting process, especially during a pandemic. It can be hard to decide what to focus on, where to apply, or how to navigate college applications or financial aid forms. 

Check out this video from Matriculate, a free college advising organization, that gives tips on building your college lists, creating a strong college application, and navigating standardized testing during the pandemic.

Financial Aid 101

For many students, paying for college can present a huge obstacle. However, there are many types of financial aid available to you, including federal and school-based grants, private scholarships, federal and private loans, work-study, and so much more! To access any of this aid, your first step is completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. This video will help walk you through that process:

Challenge #1

Use this College Search Template to build your college list.

Part 2: Planning for the Future

Designing Your Future

Setting goals helps make your dreams become reality by defining a roadmap from where you are to where you want to be. In this Passion Roadmap exercise, you will envision what your ideal life looks like in the short, medium, and long term; you’ll be surprised to see how even your greatest aspirations can be broken down into smaller, more manageable steps. Print or make a handwritten copy of the online Your Passion Roadmap handout, a free downloadable resource from Passion Planner, and follow the instructions on the page. 

Resume Building & Job Applications

As a high school student, writing a resume is a great way to get ready for both college and the working world. A resume is a summary of all your accomplishments, including your education, extracurricular activities, hobbies, and job experience. Creating a resume may seem boring or intimidating, but it's really just a simple outline of your experiences! Many high schoolers feel like they don't have enough accomplishments to fill a page, but you can include almost anything that shows off your skills and work ethic, from babysitting to a school club or sports team.

In this video by Francisco Cordero from the Princeton University Center for Career Development, you can learn tips on making your own resume, finding a job, and preparing for your future career. 

Challenge #2

Create a Passion Roadmap and write your resume. 

Part 3: Developing Your Leadership Skills

What Kind of Leader Are You?

This next activity will help you explore your leadership skills through an examination of your personality. Understanding your personality or your leadership style is helpful in accomplishing your goals.

To take the Enneagram test, mark each statement based on how well it describes your personality. For each question, select which statement that has been true MOST OF YOUR LIFE. Try not to over-analyze the questions or think of "exceptions to the rule." Once you’re done, you’ll be given a personality report that outlines how your Enneagram type affects your personal and professional life.

Time Management 101

Time management is the process of organizing and planning how to divide your time between specific activities. Good time management enables you to work smarter—not harder—so that you get your work done on time. With practice, it may help reduce your stress levels and even improve the quality of your work! Once you have your goals set, you must use your time wisely to accomplish your goals. Understanding your goals and how long it’ll take you to achieve them will allow you to successfully complete all your requirements on time.

These next two videos submitted by learning consultants from the McGraw Center for Teaching & Learning will offer you some tools to help you improve your organizational skills. 

The first video is a video by Turquoise Brewington '22 where she walks us through her SCRUM board, an organization/time management tool. 

The second video offers a tutorial on how to use Trello, another organizational tool. 

Challenge #3

Take the Ennegram personality test and let us know what leadership style you resonate with the most. 

Conclusion

We hope that this experience has been able to give you an opportunity to improve and refine your skills as a leader as well as give you more resources for college! All this to say, one of the best skills to learn as a leader is taking care of yourself and your health (physical and mental). No great leader can give what they don’t have, so please make sure to rest and relax. Now giving final remarks is Associate Dean Theresa Thames from the Office of Religious Life.

Helpful Resources