Be The Change Leadership Academy: Rainbow students answer the call

Minga! It’s the call to come together for the common good – a call students in Rainbow Schools will answer as they attend the "Be The Change" Leadership Academy which began on Monday, April 14th and continues until Wednesday, April 16th at Lockerby Composite School.

Approximately 30 Grade 10 and 11 students with a passion for volunteerism are participating in this session from 9 am to 3 pm daily. Students from Espanola and Manitoulin are joining via teleconference from Espanola High School.

Presented by Free the Children, Leaders Today, Sudbury Minga for Maasai, and Rainbow District School Board, this initiative will inspire students to get involved.

"During these three days, students will develop leadership skills and gain an awareness of sustainability in the context of meaningful local and global issues," says Jean Hanson, Director of Education for Rainbow District School Board. "Education is the key to healthy, sustainable societies. Today’s students are tomorrow’s leaders, making character development and leadership training critical to our future prosperity."

Under the guidance of facilitators from Leaders Today, the Leadership Academy will focus on three-components – leadership development, education and action planning.  Workshops will include Effective Public Speaking, the Seven Steps to Social Involvement, Interpersonal Communications, Active Listening, Time Management, and Assertive Communications.

Leaders Today facilitators will challenge students to look at their role within their local and global community.  Students will participate in discussions and hear presentations on challenges being faced by the international community. They will learn more about Free the Children’s work in countries around the world.

Following this, participants will develop and share school action plans to raise funds and awareness for the Sudbury Minga for Maasai project. The leadership workshops will combine training with supporting curriculum, to ensure students have the resources they need to support this initiative.

Minga, an Andean call of "coming together for the common good", fosters sustainability with communities helping communities. "This is a local project in which clubs, groups, organizations and faith communities are joining together to create sustainable changes in the lives of children and adults in a Maasai Mara village in rural Kenya," explains organizer Lori Adams.

She adds: "Student leadership development, global citizenship, social advocacy, and demonstrated action based on the belief that individually and collectively we can make a difference are the building blocks for the Sudbury Minga for Maasai project." The project, through the Free The Children: Adopt a Village program, focuses primarily on education, alternative income, health care and clean water.

"By contributing to this project, students in Rainbow Schools will learn about different cultures and gain a greater understanding about social issues such as education, poverty, health and sustainable development," says Director Hanson. "More importantly, they will become leaders of positive change through good global citizenship."

She adds: "Rainbow District School Board is committed to education for sustainable development – enough, for all, forever. We believe action can have a positive impact on social and environmental issues here at home and around the world."

The "Be The Change" Leadership Academy is one of many opportunities students in Rainbow Schools will have to encourage them to think globally, act responsibly, gain leadership skills, develop responsible citizenship and value the rewards in serving others. Other events include the "Millennium in Motion" speaking tour on May 6th at Sudbury Secondary School, ongoing work on Rainbow Schools Go Green initiatives, and participation in the Roots & Shoots Conference this fall.

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Media Contact:

Nicole Charette, Senior Advisor,
Corporate Communications and Strategic Planning,
Rainbow District School Board, 705.674.3171, ext. 7217.