Senior Seminar Students Lead with a Leadership Conference
Having delved into and debated leadership from a variety of perspectives, students in the Senior Seminar class took up their own leadership challenge—successfully planning, organizing, and hosting a day-long conference in mid-April.
Titled “Today, Not Tomorrow,” the conference brought together at least 60 Upper School juniors and seniors as well as a group of peers and teachers from MICDS, a nearby independent school, for a day of discussion and sharing.
According to Dean of Innovation and Academics Peter Dry, who has been teaching the class this year, the purpose of the conference was three-fold: “To give students in class the opportunity to lead a large event; to learn more about the skill sets and mindsets of successful leaders; and to have the opportunity to interact with peers to solve issues in their school or community.” In his view, “All three goals were met. The members of the class were certainly tested in their leadership and forced to step out of their comfort zone. Multiple roles were required, and the list of jobs and logistics was long. The conference was a success.”
Those who participated in and helped run the event agree. “I think the conference was really beneficial, fun, and inspiring,” says senior Lily Oyer. “I loved getting to hear from such accomplished speakers, as well as collaborate with old and new friends.”
Students responded with great enthusiasm to the opening keynote by entrepreneur and motivational speaker Lewis Howes (US’01, C’08), who shared strategies and attitudes that characterize successful leaders from all walks of life. Daily gratitude, contemplation and introspection, persistence in the face of failure, and a sense of service are essential characteristics that successful leaders evince, Howes told students. St. Louis entrepreneur and jewelry maker Sutton Lasater also delivered a keynote, sharing her insights into leadership mindsets such as agile thinking, risk-taking, and being fearless about failure. A third speaker, internationally renowned performance coach Mark Dobson, Skyped in from Australia and emphasized the power of forming and pursuing a vision.
During the afternoon, students engaged in small group activities focused around issues, large or small, that individuals wanted to change. Students shared their ideas and had to get at least six others to join them on the same issue, after which the groups broke out to discuss possible changes and solutions. “It was very beneficial and helped us all think outside the box in an innovative way,” remarked one participant.
Summing up the day’s events, senior Tyler Winterbottom said, “My biggest takeaway is this: The successful leader is self-made and goes by his own standards. They are not bound by restrictions put on them by society. The only person that can spark the change you want to see is yourself.”
Note: Upper School senior and Senior Seminar class member Zoe Boyman contributed reporting for this article.