Youth Leadership Program inspires community service
Monday, May 6, 2024
Photos by Rob Hinkal, social media specialist
Seventeen students from six area school districts participated in the 2023-24 Penn College Youth Leadership Program, an initiative hosted annually by Pennsylvania College of Technology.
As part of their engagement, the youth leaders experienced field trips to local community service agencies and hosted guest speakers from the organizations. On the field trips, the students participated in a service project. Collectively, they achieved more than 110 hours of service. One example: At the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank, students packed 320 boxes of food for the food bank’s senior citizens program.
This year’s Penn College Youth Leadership Program participants were: Delaney Burget, Emma Gill and Gabrielle Seals, representing Jersey Shore Area High School; Ben Cappel, Kendall Cohick and Lauren O’Malley, of Loyalsock Township High School; Jacob Dietrich, Mitchell Myers and Nolan Voneida, of Montgomery Area High School; Kaidance Meixel, Sophia Reid and Chase Wright, from St. John Neumann Regional Academy; Sophia Carithers and Sidney Ertel, of South Williamsport Jr./Sr. High School; and Christopher Koschak, Adriana Krause and Colton Wade, from Sullivan County High School.
At the recent Youth Leadership Graduation Dinner, held in Penn College’s Thompson Professional Development Center, the students shared their program experiences, and Cohick and O’Malley served as student speakers for the evening. Each student was presented with a “certificate of graduation” for completing the program.
A panel of Penn College representatives shared their leadership experiences and advice with the young leaders and their dinner guests.
The college panel featured President Michael J. Reed; Joanna K. Flynn, vice president for academic affairs and provost; Anthony J. Pace, associate vice president for enrollment and academic operations; Jennifer McLean, dean of students; and Audriana L. Empet, director of admissions. The panel was moderated by Ashlee C. Felix, assistant director of student engagement.
For more about Penn College, a national leader in applied technology education, email the Admissions Office or call toll-free 800-367-9222.
