Youth Leadership in Middlesex

Peer Leaders/Mediators from the Locke Middle School in Billerica are committed to supporting their fellow students and each other. They develop pride in themselves as peace keepers, teaching peers about the value of working out conflicts in a cooperative manner. The peer leaders implement a transition program for incoming sixth graders, facilitate spirit week for grades six through eight and support incoming fifth graders with their transition to middle school by participating in an elementary program. The peer leaders are also trained as storytellers for three and four year old children at the Billerica Town Library. For more information, contact Dyhanna Noble, Peer Leader/Mediator Advisor, (978) 436-9430.

The Merriam School in Acton’s “Handshake Project” has raised awareness on issues of sportsmanship in Major League Baseball and community-wide. A group of fifth and sixth graders, concerned with violence occurring between major league baseball players, fans and students in school, decided to encourage better sportsmanship between the biggest rivalry in major league baseball: the Red Sox and the Yankees. The students wrote letters and sent Power Point presentations to Yankee and Red Sox owners persuading them to support a handshake between players before Fenway’s opening day game on April 11, 2005. Although the handshake never occurred, the powerful message of this small idea has grown into a campaign promoting sportsmanship at the Merriam School and in the surrounding community. The project was recently awarded $10,000 by XM Satellite Radio so students could continue promoting good sportsmanship. For more information about the Handshake Project please contact Principal Sandra Wilensky at 978-264-4700 ext. 3750.

Sue Batler, a guidance counselor at Newton South High School wrote to commend the work of Benjamin Winter, an exceptional peer leader at the school. She writes: “Benjamin Winter’s altruistic deeds have impressed faculty, students, friends and the community at large. For three years he has spearheaded the Sponsor-a-Family service project. The project provides a Boston child and his or her family with warm clothes and presents for the holidays. Some member of these single mother families has a significant medical illness that puts even greater economic stress on the family. Through Ben’s leadership and guidance, this unique program came to involve the entire student body. Interested homerooms were given details about a family and items were then selected specifically with the family in mind. Students reported that this approach brought the group together while making them feel like they have made a difference in the life of a family. For more information on the Sponsor-a Family initiative, please contact Ms. Batler at sue-batler@newton.mec.edu or 617-559-6536.

The student peer leaders from the Perkins School in Watertown who attended MPY’s “Sean and Betsie” training worked with two Perkins staff to organize an assembly for other students at the school. The assembly featured special guest, Mrs. Dodie Hughes, who spoke about losing her daughter Betsie to a drunk driver. Students, faculty and staff were deeply moved by the assembly and applauded the efforts of the peer leaders in addressing issues of alcohol use and safety. For more information, contact Kathy Bull at 617-972-7402.

Woburn High School students volunteer their time and energy to The Giving Camp, a day of activities for mentally and physically challenged individuals in and around their city. This past year, under the direction of teacher Randi Orpen and Giving Camp director, Diane Ricciardelli, 50 high school students were paired with 'guests' during two Giving Camps. One camp took place in October with a Halloween theme and the second one took place in May with a beach party theme, even though they were in the middle of a nor'easter! All participants smiled, sang, danced and laughed all day while getting to know the 'people in their neighborhood' and came away with an appreciation of diverse life styles. For more information about sponsoring a Giving Camp in your school, please visit thegivingcamp.org or contact Randi Orpen at rorpen1@comcast.net or Jill Leach at JLeach@hopkinton.k12.ma.us

The Network for Women's Lives, in collaboration with students at Assabet Valley Regional Vocational High School through the Young Entrepreneurs Alliance program (YEA), has produced “Love Isn't Supposed to Hurt”, a booklet to raise teen's awareness of the behavioral and psychological characteristics of relationship abuse and to educate them about what constitutes a healthy relationship. The collaboration of the Network for Women's Lives with YEA is quite special. YEA is a non-profit company dedicated to supporting at-risk teens to turn their lives around through business ownership within their school settings. The Network for Women's Lives is committed to providing public school domestic violence education programs. The partnering of the two groups enhanced and supported both programs whose goal is to prevent risk-taking behavior in youth. The teen dating violence booklet will be distributed to a number of Middlesex County high schools this winter. For more information, please contact Joan Rubin-Deutsch at jsr.deutsch@verizon.net.

Do You Work With Exceptional Youth Leaders?

Would You Like To Share The Work Of These Youth Leaders With Others?

Please send your 100 - 150 word paragraph describing a youth-led or student-driven program which helps to create and/or enhance a positive school climate (peer mediation, GLSTA, diversity clubs, etc. . .) or that helps to prevent risk-taking behavior in youth (smoking cessation, SADD, violence prevention, etc. . . ) to:
Project Alliance
attn: Youth Leadership
15 Commonwealth Avenue
Woburn, MA 01801
or email info@projectalliance.org

Write-ups will appear in the Partnerships and on-line at www.projectalliance.org