Why Leadership/Employability Development & Service?

 

We believe the LeaderSpark program sparks engagement in education, which is the first step to a pathway out of poverty. If students are to strive for change, they must first have hope to understand the why to making their situation better.

Our goal is for students to fully realize the impact of their contributions, not to act simply on the instructions of others. LeaderSpark’s sequenced curriculum supports participants in finding their ‘spark’, coaches in leadership development through interactive activities, explores community challenges and makes connections for participants regarding how they relate & impact their lives. 

 

LeaderSpark‘s curriculum gives participants an opportunity to take action. Many LeaderSpark participants are from diverse backgrounds and have challenges to resources; we aim to help students understand the impact of leadership skills & service on breaking the cycle of extreme poverty.

 

Service is the core of LeaderSpark’s program curriculum, it is a key component for youth development and empowerment. Through service, participants address problems in their communities while developing personal leadership and teamwork skills. By making a positive difference in the lives of others, they learn more about themselves and the power they have to transform their own lives, schools, their communities, and our world. Through service, LeaderSpark participants elevate expectations for themselves and their communities.

 

Direct Service Projects

Whether serving meals at Ronald McDonald house, serving at soup kitchens, teaching elementary school students to eliminate bullying, or collecting gloves to distribute to the homeless, LeaderSpark service projects connect participants directly to those most in need in their communities. With face-to-face encounters, youth develop empathy and compassion. They create bonds that affect their own lives just as profoundly as the lives of those they serve.

 

Indirect Service Projects

Sometimes the most noticeable and uplifting difference you can make in a community is to beautify it. By planting urban gardens, or cleaning up graffiti, students show their community that they care.

Indirect service allows students to make a difference in small

ways which can have a big impact on the community at large.