Here is his story…
“In a short amount of time as a newcomer to Student Leadership Services I’ve had to learn a lot. One thing I’ve learned is that when people say SLS is ‘student-led’ they truly mean it. The students are in control of it all from brainstorming issues that need to be addressed in their high schools to the themes of the SLS State Conference. I’ve said on numerous occasions, ‘SLS is not afraid to put the ball in the student hands.’ As a father of two teenagers myself I understand how difficult giving up control can be, because I always think I know best.
When you hear people say they teach or work with high school students their responses are usually not positive because so many adults are down on our young people. I hear people say things like ‘those students drive me crazy’ or ‘kids these days are not like they used to be.’ I disregard those types of remarks because for me they couldn’t be further from the truth. I have interacted with the students of SLS and I’m here to tell everyone that those types of comments do not apply. These students are not the problems as some might try to categorize. They’re motivated to discover solutions for the problems; they get it, unlike me who didn’t have a clue when I was their age.
Being involved with SLS has strengthened my beliefs in the generations to come. As time passes and the students of SLS transition from high school into college, then on to adulthood, I believe that they all will have developed the leadership skills to achieve great successes in life. My wish is when they look back at their time spent with SLS it is viewed as the cornerstone of those successes.” -Toby Dowell
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