By Sidney Kane
Sentry Staff Reporter
Being a leader does not necessarily mean being in charge. According to Shari Benites, Leadership and Minority Achievement Coordinator, leadership is much more.
“People often think of leadership as the SGA president and the people who are in charge or who run for office,” says Benites, “but I think every day you can show leadership by doing the right thing by helping someone else, by treating other people with respect, and by standing up for other people who are being bullied or are in a hard situation. There are all those different levels of leadership that I think we try to develop.”
The leadership center, room 223, is somewhere students gather and collaborate on projects that will benefit the community. The coordinators of this office are always trying to come up with new and exciting ways for students to help out and volunteer. Each year, they start new programs and hold events that will hopefully attract excited newcomers.
Some of these programs are part of national and international organizations, such as Best Buddies and National Honors Society (NHS), among others. Others are based on partnerships, such as the Northern Virginia Aids Ministry (NOVAM), Arlington Street People’s Assistance Network (APSAN), YMCA Modern General Assembly, Volunteer Emergency Support Team (VEST), Minority Student Achievement Network (MSAN), Leadership in Our Neighborhoods (LIONS) and more. The leadership center also suggests the variety of clubs available to students, including Latinas Leading Tomorrow and Key Club.
Best Buddies pairs participants with special needs students in school-related activities and events. This is open to all at any time. The National Honors Society recognizes juniors and seniors who have at least a 3.5 cumulative Grade Point Average and stand out for their scholarship, leadership, service and character. The Northern Virginia Aids Ministry is a youth speak program that trains students to speak to 10th grade health classes about HIV, AIDS, STIs and drug and alcohol abuse. You must be trained in the fall to join. Arlington Street People’s Assistance Network members help bag meals and hot food and take them to two different sites in Arlington to give to the homeless. You can join this at any time, and the help is appreciated.
The YMCA Modern General Assembly decides on laws in Virginia they want to see changed or added, then go down to Richmond in March for a mock general assembly and try to get their bills passed. The Volunteer Emergency Support Team is coming to Yorktown next year; it will train students by informing them how to prepare for any kind of weather tragedy such as a flood or hurricane, then get them to teach to classrooms. The Minority Student Achievement Network is for minority boys who have at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA and is also coming next year. Leadership in Our Neighborhoods consists of nominated and accepted 10th and 11th graders who do various community services.
There is also a leadership and diversity class. It is open to sophomores, juniors and seniors. This is a full year social studies elective course that trains students to promote tolerance and mutual respect as well as other diversity issues. They are trained through the Help Increase the Peace Program (HIPP) and are brought closer to the school and community through lessons in conflict resolution, gender and relationships, self awareness, diversity and racism.
The leadership office so far has raised money for the Alexis Jackson Scholarship fund and hosted the student-staff basketball game. They recently promoted Jeans for Teens. Gently used jeans were collected for homeless teenagers.
“I think there’s a good environment of giving back and helping others at Yorktown,” says Benites. “In general, Yorktown kids help each other, have a generally pleasant atmosphere here. I think some of that comes from leadership because we’re here to help others and try to do things that would make others’ lives easier. For the students who are involved they get some really good experience and develop skills that will help them throughout their lives. I think it’s all skill development and personal development.”
One of the other programs the leadership office runs is the Student Government Association. According to their website, “the purpose of the SGA is to support and promote all policies relating to student life and to encourage unity and cohesion by coordinating school activities.”
It consists of four elected members called the Executive Board, Vice-Presidents from individual classes, class representatives and faculty.
If you are interested in joining one or more of these programs, feel free to visit the leadership office or see the school website.
