With its inaugural class, a selected 31 students out of 80 who applied became ambassadors at the Martin Luther King Youth Leadership Conference last weekend in Medford, N.J. The conference was part of a peer leadership program designed to teach students lessons in tolerance and advocacy toward positive social changes. Of the 31 student ambassadors who attended, three were from high school in West New York: Edgar Varela, Mercy Villa, and Eddy Iturbide.
Of 80 applications received, 31 students were selected.
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The program consists of three parts. The first was a four-day summer event to begin the conference, establish unity between the diverse groups of students, and analyze biases to prevent discrimination.
The second phase consisted of this past weekend’s three-day retreat at Camp Ockanickon in Medford, N.J., to gain skills in conflict resolution, communication, and self-management.
The third and final leg of the program will be held in the spring and close the program with a review of lessons learned and a ceremony.
Lessons learned
Exercises were designed to help students understand the importance of tolerance. Groups of students were divided, and then each group was given a number of lemons. Each student received a lemon and the exercise required that the student design a life for the lemon as if it were a person. The lemon had a story to tell about its upbringing, adulthood, up until the end of its life. Then students were told to bring their lemon with the lemons of other groups and were asked questions about how they thought the lemons might interact.
Finally, the instructor would then throw into the mix an egg to signify someone fragile or shy or another type of fruit or vegetable. The goal was to bring together a mixture of edible items and find similarities and differences that made them important to the group.
“When they get on the bus, the students are quiet. When you see them return, you see the bus full of students talking and making friends,” said Melendez.
All three students acknowledged the value of the lessons learned at the conference, the friendships they made, and their appreciation for their teachers Mr. Donelly and Mrs. Cruz, who encouraged them to be a part of the program.
Expanding the project
According to Melendez, the students were able to attend the empowerment program free of cost thanks to sponsorship by companies like Verizon, PSE&G, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Melendez said he believes that due to requests made and the success of the program, he is hopeful it will expand to include at least 50 students in the future.
For more information on the Ceicilyn Miller Institute’s High School Peer Mediation Training Program, visit their website at: http://www.themillerinstitute.com. For more information on the MLK Youth Empowerment Conference visit their website at: http://www.martinlutherkingconference.com.
Melissa Rappaport may be reached at mrappaport@hudsonreporter.com