Communities First Association

Servant Leadership: Developing Students During the Lunch Hour

Students of the past used to worry about what they would do after graduation, what school they would go to and who they would marry. Today's teens face very different decisions. Some of the issues are life-threatening or life-changing including: teen pregnancy, drug/alcohol abuse, self-destructive/hate behavior (such as cutting, eating disorders), mental health issues (specifically depression), the emptiness of pop culture, communication technology allowing us 24 hours of global news and needs, bullying/youth violence, peer pressure, worries about the future with nuclear war, environmental destruction and economic windfall always on the horizon.
How can students face their future with a sense of hope and expectation rather than doom and feelings of being overwhelmed by it all? How can they be empowered to make a difference? KC San Dimas is sponsoring a pilot program at a local middle school. "Servant Leadership's" goal is to develop Student Leadership in students by raising their Emotional Intelligence (EI) through modeling and implementing the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey. EI is quickly replacing IQ as the most sought after individual quality in the marketplace. Therefore developing EI in adolescents will prepare them for future success. By raising EI of a student population, they believe students will be self motivated to do well in school, have healthy relationships and engage in extra curricular activities. Last month, I had the opportunity to sit in on the leadership's planning and review meeting. This team is made up of people who are passionate about students including youth pastors, teachers, parents and neighbors. The team reviewed ways they are building servant leadership on the a local middle school campus. In Kingdom Causes we value students and believe it is God's call for us to mentor, invest and give opportunities to young people as they discover and grow into who God had made them to be. We can't think of a better way to do this then through this innovative Servant Leadership program developed by Kingdom Causes San Dimas. We also believe in the power of partnership. We can not mentor students alone, but in partnership with schools, teachers, parents and communities.
The Servant Leadership Team spends time on the campus during school lunch hours interacting with students and asking them questions about priorities, values, hopes and dreams. One of the questions they recently asked was, "What is the most important thing you do in the morning?" The follow up activity is the "medallion" activity. Medallions with the following names: health, spiritual, financial, relationships, recreation, education are placed on a pole. Students were asked to take each off and place around the neck of a fellow student and then line the students up in order of importance for life. Discussions followed this activity of "Put First Things First". As a result, students were better able to personally process their values. Another activity, "Sharpen the Saw", asked the students, "who is their hero and what can you do to be like them?" Using the 4 Quadrants of Life (a poster board with the headings spiritual, mental, physical and emotional) students were asked how they sharpen their saw in each of these areas. By enabling and encouraging students to grow in these aspects, this activity creates opportunity for students to serve their community. Servant Leadership - developing students to serve their community!
Please check out Kingdom Causes San Dimas website for more inspiring stories like this.