Lexington, SC 05/14/2024 - If we were to judge future generations based solely on what we see in the media, we should be terrified. Knockout challenges, declining academics, civil unrest and violence all give us reason to wonder what is happening in our world. The narrative is scary, but it isn’t the full picture.
The way to defeat societal decay is to equip and encourage strong leaders to re-steer the masses. Bullying, dangerous social media ‘challenges’, weakening academic performances, and waning morality can all be combated when the right people are prepared to say and do the right things. We need to raise up new generations of teenagers to intentionally take on the problems of the world with compassion, boldness, kindness, and strength, empowering them with the skills, knowledge, and moral compass needed to emerge as influential leaders capable of driving positive change in their communities and beyond. Teen Lead 360, a nonprofit organization launching right here in the Midlands of South Carolina, has a goal of doing just that.
Bryce Myers, Director of Lexington School District One’s Technology Center, states, “We are at a crossroads for the future of our world, nation, state, and community. We need youth that are prepared to lead and create positive change for their futures and future generations.” Despite what rumors we hear, or what stories easily circulate around social media, we do not have a complete generation of unintelligent, immoral teenagers. In fact, parents and educators across the country can give lists of names of students who are honorable, hard-working, and smart. The problem arises when those students are ill-equipped with the confidence and skills to speak up and lead. It’s hard to be a teenager, but it is even more difficult to be a teenage leader.
Teen Lead 360 is building a web of strategies and programs to help address this issue. The most prominent, and the one with the potential greatest ROI, is a nine month intensive leadership development program. A select class of 25-30 students will be selected to participate in this program, where they will gather once a month for intentional teaching and classes, but the growth will not stop there. One-on-one coaching, weekly instruction, regular encouragement, and peer-guided discussions will all prepare participants to put their skills to the test in a final student-led project.
Each class will be tasked with dreaming up their own project, vision cast it to peers and sponsors, advertise it, plan it, recruit for it, and execute it from start to finish. This program climax will allow students to further sharpen their leadership skills while gaining indispensable confidence to tackle other problems in their own worlds, and beyond.
Teen Lead 360’s inaugural class will launch this fall, and is currently accepting applications for its first class of participants. If you have a 9th-12th grader interested in participating, please go to www.teenlead360.com for more information, or to apply. Applications are due by June 30, 2024.
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