Pendleton County
Sophomore Youth Leadership Initiative
Sponsored by:
The Pendleton County Community Development Office
And
Pendleton County School GATES Program
September 2015
PCHS SOPHOMORE YOUTH LEADERSHIP INITIATIVE
Program Purpose Statement:
This program has been established as a means of educating youth about what it means to be
a good leader and civically engaged in their community.
Program Overview:

Career Development :
The purpose of the program is to bring youth into the leadership program and mentor
them to better understand the dynamic of civic engagement and its importance to the
community. This understanding will in turn enable these youth to become leaders not only
among their peer group but also in the community at large. Further, the program will offer
youth the opportunity to meet with professionals from many different career paths to
understand what they do, how they came to their profession and how they view leadership
from their perspective. This perspective is crucial. The thought is, no matter the career
choice, all leaders share common character traits. Meeting with several leaders from
different walks of life will allow youth to discover and understand those character traits
and why they are important.

School Affiliation :
A school counselors and GATES program teacher will be part of the Leadership Planning
Council. The program starts in September and run through the next September with a
graduation ceremony at the end. The students will need to be out of school no more than
five days total (this may be a combination of half days) during the school year, mostly for
the career development portion of the program.

Number of Participants and Admissions Process :
The program is open to all students in their sophomore year of high school. Approximately
10 - 12 youth will be enroll in the program. To join the program, each youth must complete
an application with questionnaire and provide teacher references. The applications will be
reviewed by the Leadership Planning Council.
1

Leadership Planning Council :
The Leadership Planning Council consists of several leaders from the community. Their
role will be to guide the program, establish curriculum and coordinate activity. The Youth
Leadership Council will be independent of the League of Women Voters of Pendleton
County but the league will serve as a founding supporter of the council and at least two of
its board members will sit on the council.
Members include the following:
-
Michele Hamilton,
Mary Hillenmeyer,
Amy Hitch,
Michelle Lustenberg,
Shelley Meyers,
Bill Mitchell,
JoEllen Mitchell,
Mike Moore,
Debbie Young.
Curriculum:

Leadership Assessment: Each leadership class will take a leadership assessment at the
orientation meeting as a control standard. Then, this same class will take the same test
again at graduation to determine to what degree they have increased their understanding
and awareness of what comprises a good leadership.

Attend Elected Officials Meetings: Each student will attend local elected officials meetings
during the month of February. The class will go to a fiscal court caucus meeting, a
Falmouth City Council meeting and a tourism meeting.
Specifics:
-
The first meeting the class will attend will be a Fiscal Court Caucus meeting, which
they will attend as a group. They will meet with advisor 30 minutes prior to the caucus
meeting for orientation and to review a one-page questionnaire, which they will
complete at the end of the caucus meeting and every subsequent elected officials
meeting.
-
Students will then attend the Falmouth City Council and tourism meetings. They are
encouraged to attend these meetings in groups, if possible, to compare notes and
discuss the proceedings.
2
-

Career and Leadership Day: Have speakers from various professions speak to youth
about their professions, how they came to their line of work and what leadership means to
them from their profession’s perspective. Students will attend all career days listed below:
-

Once all three groups have attended all of their meetings, they will meet as a class to
discuss leadership styles and character traits found in common at all the meetings
they attended.
Tourism Day,
Agricultural Day,
Education Day,
Public Service Day,
Financial Day,
Arts Day,
Judicial & Elected Officials Day,
Health Services Day.
Spring 2016 Pendleton County Community Forum: Conduct the Spring 2016 Pendleton
County Community Forum. Each class will begin in September and will spend the year
planning the next Spring’s Pendleton County Community Forum. In April, they will conduct
the forum, with assistance from the Leadership Planning Council. Students will be asked
to compile information from the forum and present it in some fashion to the community
and leadership. This could be in the form of a presentation, letter, article, webpage, etc.
Program Selection

Participation in the Sophomore Youth Leadership Initiative program is open to all
sophomores attending Pendleton County High School.

Since the number of participants to the Sophomore Youth Leadership Initiative is
limited (approximately 10 -12 participants), participants will be selected by the
Leadership Initiative Selection Committee based upon information completed on the
application and the confidential references supplied.
2015-16 Sophomore Youth Leadership Initiative Application
Name ____________________________________________ Grade _____ Age _____
Address _________________________________ City ______________ Zip __________
Home Phone ________________________
Cell Phone ___________________________
Email address ________________________________________ (make sure this is readable!!!)
Class Schedule:
Class 1 _____________________ Teacher ____________________
Class 2 _____________________ Teacher ____________________
Class 3 _____________________ Teacher ____________________
Class 4 _____________________ Teacher ____________________
Class 5 _____________________ Teacher ____________________
Class 6 _____________________ Teacher ____________________
Class 7 _____________________ Teacher ____________________
List of Extracurricular Activities:
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
Teacher References: You MUST HAVE three (3) references or you will NOT be reviewed for
membership. Please list the names of the teachers who will be providing your references (no
letter required, we will contact references):
1. __________________
2. ____________________
3. ___________________
1. What do you hope to gain through your participation in Sophomore Youth
Leadership Initiative and how would you plan to utilize this experience?
2. What is the most significant leadership quality necessary to bring about positive
change within our community?
3. What are the two most pressing issues facing the Pendleton County community
today?
4. What do you consider to be your most important community service
accomplishment thus far?
5. The program is a lot more fun than the application, so please give an example
of something comical or unusual about yourself. (This question must be
completed and may be shared with others.)
I understand that if accepted into the Sophomore Leadership Initiative Program, I am
responsible for attending all meetings as laid out in the schedule of events. I also understand
that transportation will not always be provided by the school district for after school events.
Student Signature: _____________________ Parent Signature: ______________________
2015-16 Sophomore Leadership Calendar
 2015-16 Applications Disbursed – September 1 – 4, 2015 – Mrs. L
 Applications Due – September 11, 2015 – Mrs. L
 Applicants Selected Notified – September 21, 2015 – Mrs. L
 2015-16 Orientation – September 30, 2015 (5:30 pm) – Mrs. L & 2014-15 SYL students
 Anthony Munoz Foundation Seminar – October 9, 2015 (Fall Break/all day) – Mrs. L
 Tourism Day – October 22, 2015 (all day) – Michele H & Mary
 Ag Day – October/November (TBA), 2015 (3:30 – 5:00) – Shelley Meyer
 Education Day – November 12, 2015 (12:00 – 4:00) – Mrs. L
 Arts Day – December (TBA), 2015 (all day) – Mrs. L & Mary
 Elected Officials Day – January 21, 2016 (2:00 – 4:30) – JoEllen & Mike
 Falmouth City Council Meeting - February 9, 2016 (7:00 pm) – Bill
 Pendleton County Fiscal Court Meeting -- February 15, 2016 (5:30 pm) – Bill
 Community Meeting Reflection - February 16, 2016 (8:00 – 10:00) – Bill & Mrs. L
 Public Service Day – February 18, 2016 (1:00 – 6:00) – Mike & Michele H
 Health Connections Day – March 23, 2016 (9:00 – 12:00) – Debbie
 Financial Day – April 21, 2016 (12:00 – 5:00) – Amy & JoEllen
 Community Forum – April (TBA), 2016 (PM Event) – Bill, Michele H, & Mrs. L