By Juanie Prisbrey
Moapa Valley Progress
The Mack Lyon Middle School annual leadership retreat provided student leaders with lessons in leadership and teamwork. Officers representing the school’s Student Council, National Honor Society, BETA and Yearbook took part in a two day workshop at Southern Utah University (SUU) in Cedar City.
Keynote speaker, Jared Wilcken, SUU’s Associate Director of Admission, helped the group identify challenges middle school students may face. “It’s a jungle out there,” he said. “As leaders, you have the responsibility of making your school a place where everyone can be successful.”
Wilcken asked students to brainstorm characteristics of certain safari animals and how the animals’ characteristics could be applied to the middle school setting. “We can learn a lot about leadership from each animal’s strengths,” he said.
Not only did students learn the principles of leadership, they had opportunities to put the theories to the test.
In one team building activity, each group was challenged to lower a pole to the ground while each member was only allowed to place two fingers under the pole. A person’s fingers had to be touching the pole the whole time. Most of the teams failed to complete the task on the first try because individuals were not working together. Each member was preoccupied with their own objective of keeping their fingers on the pole, thereby losing sight of the group goal.
Students also spent time setting goals and planning activities for the upcoming school year. One goal for the local group was to increase school spirit by increasing participation in after school activities, sporting events, and dress-up days.
But it wasn’t all work at the retreat, as students made time to go swimming, eat out, and take a guided campus tour.
Since the Utah Shakespearean Festival was in full swing on the SUU campus, the students were able to watch and enjoy the Green Show. The Green Show is an outdoor performance which includes singing, dancing, and skits that precedes each full length play.
