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GISD Students Participate in Leadership Camps

This past school year, 30 exceptional youth facilitators and 1,007 outstanding 4th-8th grade students were selected to participate in Education in Action’s 2013 spring break and summer camps. Lone Star Leadership Academy camps took place in Dallas/Fort Worth (4th, 5th & 6th graders), Austin/San Antonio (5th, 6th & 7th graders), and Houston/Galveston (6th, 7th & 8th graders). Selection for the Lone Star Leadership Academy was based on each student’s demonstrated academic success and leadership ability, an educator recommendation, and involvement in school/community activities.

Greenville Sixth Grade Center student Kenzie Gray, Greenville Middle School Student Coleman Avants and Greenville High School student Ryan Bays attended the camp. Ryan Bays was one of the thirty chosen to serve as a youth facilitator.

During the weeklong Lone Star Leadership Academy camps, delegations of distinguished students gathered to develop leadership skills while learning about the great state of Texas. Participants visited historically, politically, scientifically, and environmentally significant sites. Venues included places such as the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing, the Fort Worth Stockyards National Historic District, and the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza on the Dallas/Fort Worth program; the offices of participants’ state legislators at the Texas State Capitol, The Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum, bat watching on the Lone Star Riverboat, and The Alamo on the Austin/San Antonio program; and NASA, a boat tour of Galveston Bay with a marine biologist, the San Jacinto Battleground Monument, and Moody Gardens on the Houston/Galveston program. Career speakers introduced participants to a wide variety of unique career and internship opportunities.

The Lone Star Leadership Academy experience provides a unique opportunity for outstanding students to learn about Texas leaders and what it means to be from the Lone Star State. Participants discuss what they learn, complete problem-solving and decision-making simulations, exercise creativity, and practice presentation skills in Leadership Groups. In addition, participants have fun meeting other outstanding students and making new friends while adding to their resume of academic achievements, developing leadership skills, and bringing home a wealth of information to supplement what they are learning in school.