The Alberta Student Leadership Conference (ASLC) starts this Sunday at Drumheller Valley Secondary School.
The school plays host to 52 different schools from Alberta and one school from Nunavut for the event.
This is the 28th year for the annual conference, which will see 600 students and 100 advisors taking part.
Conference chair, teacher Cindy Karpa, said the goals at the conference includes helping students learn that both they and their contributions to the world are valuable.
“It’s inspiring students that they have a voice, and it can be heard, and they can make a difference.”
Karpa said leadership development events will include having the students attend keynote speakers on different topics such as facing challenges and overcoming adversity, accepting and embracing your own individuality, and social activism and enterprises.
“Having them attend keynote speakers - that gives them an opportunity to experience things that they normally wouldn’t outside their school.”
It’s a good opportunity to bring in speakers that an average, rural school wouldn’t regularly have the budget for.
The conference is bringing back Rachel’s Challenge, which first visited DVSS in 2011, and then again in 2012.
Rachel’s Challenge is an organization that helps youth with acceptance, kindness, compassion, and respect of others.
Karpa said Rachel’s Challenge had an impact with the school, and they’ve seen positive changes as a result.
And it encourages and motivates the students.
“It’s empowering them to step forward and do those things and believe in themselves.”
Karpa said there will be small group workshops that students get to select from. Some are hosted by local teachers and local community members, as well as those from outside the community and province.
70 students from DVSS called “Spirit Leaders” will be heading up the student groups called Spirit Groups, consisting of about 30 kids, with 2 of the 70 students as leaders working together with the group.
Another 30 students have given their time to work on the tech crew for the conference, and there are a number of students volunteering.
