Community Leaders, CEOs, elected officials, At CUSD, we believe in growing our own, and we are proud of the new generation of leaders honing their skills on our campuses. Meet a few CUSD leaders-in-training:
Michael Ricci is the 2014-15 student representative to the Board of Trustees, where he has the opportunity to voice student opinions at school board meetings. He is a senior at Carlsbad High School with an impressive resume.
A standout scholar, Ricci plays on the varsity football team; is a co-producer of CHSTV, his school's award-winning broadcasting program and is actively involved in ASB. He was one of the creators of the student film "Invisible Threat," which was just awarded the 2014 Drew Silvern Award for Courage in Journalism by the San Diego Press Club. He plans to attend a top college and then law school. Maybe one day he'll be a White House correspondent.
Also consider Joey Szalkiewicz, a junior at Carlsbad High School, who has set a goal to climb the seven summits, the tallest mountains on each of the 7 continents,, by the time he graduates high school in 2016. This past January, he conquered his third summit, Mt. Aconcagua in the Argentinian Andes. His two other successful climbs were Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and Mt. Elbrus in Russia. The goal of reaching even one summit seems nearly impossible to most teenagesr, but Szalkiewicz is a quiet influencer and a truly impressive role model. He also has a non-profit called Share the View.
There's Ally Hatter, another 11th grader at Carlsbad High, whose first leadership experience came in the eighth grade. She took part in a peer mediation and conflict resolution program called Where Everyone Belongs (WEB) to help sixth grade students transition to middle school. Ally went on to become one of three junior varsity cheerleading captains, which she found to be a responsible leadership role. Now, she serves on my Student Superintendent Advisory Council (SSAC) where she has the opportunity to speak on behalf of all CUSD students to help the school district be the best it can be. Her dream is to be a math or science teacher.
Successful student leaders are athletes, actors, dancers, singers, speech-makers and debaters. They communicate, they raise the bar, they lead by example. Influential student leaders find high leverage activities to keep others involved and connected to what's happening within their school community.
Carlsbad Unified's elementary students can serve on their schools' student councils. Middle and high school students can be a part of ASB, a host of student clubs, or school-based programs such as AVID. CHS students can aspire to become a Champion Lancer, and Valley Middle School students can take advantage of the ARC GOALS program (Great Outdoor Adventure Leadership Series) or the Safe School Ambassadors grant.
As Michael Ricci says, "Being a leader is definitely not an easy task. You need to find you own style to rally people together. It's important to know what people think, and how to motivate them."
"Leadership has to come from believing in something and wanting to make a difference," states Hatter. "You have to want to help others, to make their lives better. I want to be a good role model, and to make good decisions."
Michael Ricci is the 2014-15 student representative to the Board of Trustees, where he has the opportunity to voice student opinions at school board meetings. He is a senior at Carlsbad High School with an impressive resume.
A standout scholar, Ricci plays on the varsity football team; is a co-producer of CHSTV, his school's award-winning broadcasting program and is actively involved in ASB. He was one of the creators of the student film "Invisible Threat," which was just awarded the 2014 Drew Silvern Award for Courage in Journalism by the San Diego Press Club. He plans to attend a top college and then law school. Maybe one day he'll be a White House correspondent.
Also consider Joey Szalkiewicz, a junior at Carlsbad High School, who has set a goal to climb the seven summits, the tallest mountains on each of the 7 continents,, by the time he graduates high school in 2016. This past January, he conquered his third summit, Mt. Aconcagua in the Argentinian Andes. His two other successful climbs were Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and Mt. Elbrus in Russia. The goal of reaching even one summit seems nearly impossible to most teenagesr, but Szalkiewicz is a quiet influencer and a truly impressive role model. He also has a non-profit called Share the View.
There's Ally Hatter, another 11th grader at Carlsbad High, whose first leadership experience came in the eighth grade. She took part in a peer mediation and conflict resolution program called Where Everyone Belongs (WEB) to help sixth grade students transition to middle school. Ally went on to become one of three junior varsity cheerleading captains, which she found to be a responsible leadership role. Now, she serves on my Student Superintendent Advisory Council (SSAC) where she has the opportunity to speak on behalf of all CUSD students to help the school district be the best it can be. Her dream is to be a math or science teacher.
Successful student leaders are athletes, actors, dancers, singers, speech-makers and debaters. They communicate, they raise the bar, they lead by example. Influential student leaders find high leverage activities to keep others involved and connected to what's happening within their school community.
Carlsbad Unified's elementary students can serve on their schools' student councils. Middle and high school students can be a part of ASB, a host of student clubs, or school-based programs such as AVID. CHS students can aspire to become a Champion Lancer, and Valley Middle School students can take advantage of the ARC GOALS program (Great Outdoor Adventure Leadership Series) or the Safe School Ambassadors grant.
As Michael Ricci says, "Being a leader is definitely not an easy task. You need to find you own style to rally people together. It's important to know what people think, and how to motivate them."
"Leadership has to come from believing in something and wanting to make a difference," states Hatter. "You have to want to help others, to make their lives better. I want to be a good role model, and to make good decisions."