On a cool weekend in mid-October the place to be is Palisade High School, as they hosted the first of three CHSAA Student Leadership Summits. The Summits are a series of regional Student Leadership events, designed to create opportunities for high school student leaders to share best-practices for event planning, exchange leadership content, hear from motivational speakers and network.
The student leaders at Palisade High School did a great job of putting together an agenda that was full of the aforementioned. As we filed into the gym for the opening session, music filled the morning air. Students were on the floor dancing to songs that made it feel more like a high school dance than a traditional leadership event. Palisade senior and current CHSAA State Representative, Micah Frahzo, did a fantastic job as our lead host and moderator for the day. Her humor, relaxed demeanor, and passion for leadership was evident from the moment we walked into the building. Frazho was joined in the hosting duties by fellow Bulldog Desi Lopez (11th grade), who enjoyed the event because all of their student staff was prepared and ready for any big issues.
Students from Manitou Springs High School led the crowd in silly songs, which brought back so many memories of pre-pandemic CHSAA leadership events. It was hard not to just laugh out loud as I watched students navigate the milk song. Alice Stoneback, the CHSAA Student Leadership Advisory Chair and Manitou Springs Leadership adviser, led the group in teambuilding activities.
The day went very well for both students and advisers. Throughout the day, advisers were able to gather and share in some of the great things going on in their schools as well as some of the areas they were finding concern. In both student and adviser meetings, there was a great deal of talk about how activities were going, post-COVID. With much of the talk centered around how activities were giving students opportunities to belong, grow, and learn, this was information that was received well by all in attendance.
In talking with the student leader from Palisade after the Summit, it was clear that they were well-prepared for this event and that it helped their council to come together in a way that they might not have without hosting. Students talked about how relying on each other for a larger event meant so much and how this was the first fall leadership event for many students in their program.
We also talked about how important it was for one of our summit locations to be on the Western Slope. While Palisade students talked about the importance of hosting CHSAA events on their side of the state, they also talked about the fun times they look forward to as they come to the Denver metro area or anywhere along the Front Range. According to them, there is still something fun involved with a hotel stay, eating a meal at a local restaurant, and networking with students from other schools.
Overall, the Summit was a great opportunity for us to have Colorado student leaders in the same building. Thanks to Dave Carlo (the Palisade High School Student Leadership adviser), and the Palisade High School administration for hosting the first Summit of the 2021-2022 school year.
If your school is interested in hosting or attending a Student Leadership Summit, please email Rashaan Davis (rdavis@chsaa.org) or Sandra Williamson (swilliamson@chsaa.org) for information.