The Maroondah Young Leaders is a week-long program held at the EVs Youth Centre in Croydon and involves up to thirty local year 10 students..  The program aims to develop confidence and leadership skills, with the students  selected in consultation with teachers from the participating schools.

This evening I officially congratulated the students for their successful completion of the program.  The Young Leaders program provides life-long skills, including working with groups, public speaking and confidence, which are useful in educational, recreational, employment and community pursuits.

The presentation evening includes a performance organised by the participants, where they showcase the skills they have learnt during the week.

In addition, several of the students will be participating in the Community Action Project, which is where the participants complete a project that aims to be of assistance to the wider community.  Last year’s group completed a video highlighting bullying, which was well received by schools within Maroondah.  Discussions and planning for the Community Action Project will begin in a few weeks and is coordinated through the Maroondah Youth Services Team based at the EVs Youth Centre.

The speech I delivered at the presentation evening is available within this post:

Good evening and welcome to EV’s Youth Centre.  It is great to see so many people here tonight to celebrate the achievements of our 2010 Young Leaders participants.

In the spirit of Reconciliation, we acknowledge that we are meeting on land for which the Wurundjeri people have been custodians for many centuries, and on land which the Indigenous Australians have performed age old ceremonies.

We, Maroondah City Council, accept, respect and have shared with the Wurundjeri people in their customs of welcome.

The Wurundjeri people support the coming together of all people, respecting their individuality to focus on a unified and cohesive nation.

Please join me in congratulating the participants of the Young Leaders Program for their presentation this evening.  As they mentioned Maroondah City Council’s Young Leaders Program is a week long program designed to support and empower participants by learning a range of leadership skills including:

• Effective communication skills such as  active listening and assertiveness
• Working with others, including decision making, roles within a group, conflict resolution and working together to achieve a common goal
• Community Involvement including identifying a need and planning to address that need</li>
• What it means to be a leader within your community
• And, Public Speaking as demonstrated here tonight.

The dedication of the young people participating in the program throughout the week is a credit to them and demonstrates their already established leadership qualities. I was a guest speaker at the program yesterday discussing local government, the role of Councillors and what it means to be the current Mayor of Maroondah. It was a thoroughly enjoyable experience and we discussed a range of topics, including public transport and the values we share within Maroondah.

I would like to congratulate all the Young Leaders for their efforts throughout the entire week and for tonight’s presentation. Congratulations for providing an entertaining and insightful evening and for accepting this challenge with such enthusiasm. I can see that this experience has been a positive one and hope you can now confidently implement your learning into everyday life, and develop as young leaders in our community.

In addition to recognising the young people, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the schools and parents for encouraging your young people to attend this program and supporting them to give it their best shot.  I am aware that by attending this program participants are away from school  for the whole week.  This is a big commitment so thank you for your support.

I would also like to acknowledge the efforts of Council’s Youth Services Team who have worked hard putting this program together, including facilitating the program and ensuring tonight’s event runs smoothly. Young Leaders is one of many great programs and events run by Council’s Youth Services Team, so please take the time to speak with a team member later tonight if you would like any further information.

Again, I congratulate all the Young Leaders on their achievements throughout the week, and thank them for their wonderful performance tonight. Good luck to those who are embarking on a new journey by volunteering to undertake the second phase of Young Leaders , the Community Action Project. The Community Action Program is where some of tonight’s graduates will  volunteer their own time to design and deliver their own community based project with the support of our Youth Workers. This is a great opportunity to practice leadership and to make a difference in the community.

I wish you all the very best for the future, and hope you enjoy putting the experiences from this week into practice!