T.R.A.I.L.BLAZERS:

The SHREWSBURY YOUTH LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE 

2011 TRAILBLAZERS YOUTH LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE PARTICIPANTS

2010 TRAILBLAZERS YOUTH LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE PARTICIPANTS

2009 TRAILBLAZERS YOUTH LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE PARTICIPANTS

2008 TRAILBLAZERS YOUTH LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE PARTICIPANTS

T.R.A.I.L.BLAZERS – The Shrewsbury Youth Leadership Institute.  (T.R.AI.L.BLAZERS = Teen Resources Academy and Institute for Leadership).   

T.R.A.I.L.BLAZERS  utilizes civic engagement, real world program experiences, team building activities, and guest speakers/mentors (respected local community leaders) to provide participants with the skills and experiences necessary to become active leaders within the community.  There are daily rewards for the participants, as well as a cash scholarship(s) at the end of the program.   

2011 T.R.A.I.L.BLAZERS WAS A HUGE SUCCESS!

THANK YOU TO ALL OUR SPONSORS, VOLUNTEERS, AND PARTICIPANTS!

T.R.A.I.L.BLAZERS:

The SHREWSBURY YOUTH LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE (2011)

Ø  T.R.A.I.L.BLAZERS – The Shrewsbury Youth Leadership Institute(T.R.AI.L.BLAZERS = Teen Resources Academy and Institute for Leadership).  The purpose of T.R.A.I.L.BLAZERS was to utilize civic engagement, real world experiences, team building activities, and guest speakers / mentors (respected local community leaders) to provide participants with the skills and experiences necessary to become active leaders within the community. The entire 2011 program was made possible by generous donations by Central One Federal Credit Union, Shrewsbury Federal Credit Union, and Webster Five Cents Savings Bank.

Ø   Daily rewards (gift certificates) were provided for participants who won challenges, as well as a scholarship at the end of the program.  T.R.A.I.L.BLAZERS 2011  ran for one week, July 25^th, to July 29^th , from 12:00pm-4:30pm. The Institute culminated in a community service projects run and facilitated by five (5) teams of teen participants. Successful participants received certificate of program completion and one “winning” team rec’d for cash prize/scholarship for members ($500 for the team). One “Outstanding” participant was awarded a single scholarship prize of $500 as well, typically for being the most highly rated “leader” during the program by peers, teammates, and staff.

Ø  The following items are some important facets about the Institute , as well as some highlights and notable components:

·        There were again dozens of applicants to this program (first Institute ran in the summer of 2008). Ultimately, 21 accepted students participated this year.

·        There were 9 girls and 12 boys, ranging in age from 13-17.

·        The students were divided into 5 equal teams (in terms of experience, background, gender, and interests).  

·        All the students were asked to complete a personality profile. This tool was NOT meant to provide any kind of psychological assessment or diagnosis tool for mental health issues, but rather allowed the students to understand their personality profile within the context of how they understood themselves and related to others.

·        The students’ personality profile allowed them to see how they may relate to certain leadership styles that they learned about during the week-long program.

·        Each day of the Institute each team was required to have a leader appointed for their team; each student participating in the Institute was given an opportunity to lead their team for minimally one day that week.

·        Each day there were some group discussions, interactive activities, educational presentations, etc. illustrating a different leadership style or approach or theory (facilitated by our staff).

·        Each day the teams were able to compete in friendly, fun, and active “team challenges” (activities that promote team building, active leadership skills, and positive peer relations) for prizes such as gift certificates to local stores and restaurants.

·        Each day there were guest speakers (and mentors) that highlighted their experiences with leadership roles, what styles / approaches seem to suit them best, obstacles they’ve overcome, etc.  The idea was for speakers/mentors to impart their knowledge, wisdom, insight, and inspirational stories to these developing young leaders. Guest Speakers /mentors this year included

a.      Tricia Laursen, Executive Director of 15-40 Connection, a local nonprofit organization that specializes in raising awareness of cancer risks and treatment survival rates in people age 15-40;

b.      Patrick Collins, former Marine Corps Officer and current Assistant Superintendent at Assabet Valley Regional Vocational High School;

c.       Steven Pitcher, CEO of The Ecotarium, a large public non-profit museum and wildlife center, and

d.      Sarah Sogigian, current Special Advisor Leader, Young Adult and Youth Services for Massachusetts Library System (MLS).

·        Each team picked a community service project that they worked on each day of the Institute (during daily workgroup time from 2:30pm-4:30pm, typically), which were to be completed and presented to representatives of the benefiting non-profit group/organization on Friday 7/29/11. Examples of community service projects include developing outreach plan and marketing plan – including video PSA -- for Shrewsbury Public Library, or developing a recruiting and advertising plan with the Shrewsbury’s Special Needs Program/Shrewsbury Special Olympics, develop online presence and information for the Military Child Education Coalition (MCEC), as well as creating a structure to tie SHS students into local volunteer opportunities to military – connected/effected households in town, or develop and film a public service announcement (and a volunteer recruiting tool for local teens) for the N.E.A.D.S. program, an organization that provides assistance dogs for deaf and disabled. 15-40 Connection was also served with a community service project, whereby a brochure for teens with information about cancer awareness and other educational materials were produced.

·        Each day the leader for each team was evaluated by 1) their teammates, 2) by Institute administrators, and 3) guest speakers and mentors.

·        The leader and the team with the most accumulated “points” (as evaluated by peers, staff, and guest mentors) had an opportunity to take home scholarship money(s).

The Following  Teens were selected from a talented pool of over dozens of applicants to participate in this year’s T.R.A.I.L.BLAZERS Youth Leadership Institute:

The “SUPREME SAPPHIRES (BLUE)” Team, comprised of John DeFlumeri, Briana Huie, Jeremy Rocco, and Megan Wilson, won the week’s overall team challenge with their community

service project for The Military Child Education Coalition (MCEC).  The Blue Team created a video PSA (public service announcement) for the MCEC to air locally, created brochures and online presence for military –connected families; they also created various posters and promotional materials for the MCEC in the hopes of better educating the public about MCEC and the needs of children affected by having one or more parents deployed aboard through the armed services. Special Advisor Annette Hanson (retired Army nurse and current school nurse in Shrewsbury) assisted this team, and TRAILBLAZERS staff members were a guest judges during the presentation of this project. Their ratings throughout the week help propel the SUPREME SAPPHIRES (Blue) Team to winning the weeklong team challenge!

The “SUPREME SAPPHIRES (Blue) Team” received a cash prize of $500 for being awarded the winning team. Their team also scored / accumulated the highest number of points throughout the week-long Institute.

Figure 1- The "SUPREME SAPPHIRES (Blue)" Team (l to r: Jeremy Rocco, John DeFlumeri, Briana Huie, and Megan Wilson) were winners of overall team prize ($500, courtesy of CENTRAL ONE FEDERAL CREDIT UNION)

Mary Grace McGuinn, a senior at Shrewsbury High School, won the individual scholarship at the Institute. She earned the highest ratings from peers, mentors, community service judges, and administrators for her efforts during the entire Institute.

Figure 2- Mary Grace McGuinn (right) was the winner of the individual cash scholarship of $500, courtesy of Shrewsbury Federal Credit Union.