Laurel students describe leadership gains after Rotary Youth Leadership Awards

Miss Millins introduced four Laurel High School juniors who attended the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards and asked them to describe what they learned.

“I had to think outside the box because we only had two days to come up with this,” said Elizabeth Quinn, describing timed tasks such as an egg-drop challenge and a flag-and-slide project that required teams to divide roles and move quickly. She said the experience taught her to plan under pressure and collaborate with peers from different backgrounds.

A second student, Devon Buyers, said the conference’s team-building exercises — including a nonverbal “untangle” activity — forced students to develop nonverbal communication and trust. “It challenged me in a lot of ways,” Devon said, adding that the schedule ran from about 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. and pushed participants out of their comfort zones.

Another student, Kaylee Moyer, said the weekend helped her “lead with my voice” and be more confident sharing ideas. The students also described lasting connections with peers from other schools and concrete takeaways such as public-speaking techniques and action-plan development.

Miss Millins thanked the Nanakoke Rotary Club of Seafford for sponsoring the trip and said there were no out-of-pocket costs for students. The district noted it will invite the students to share ideas locally and that the students will present at a Rotary meeting next month.

The presentation drew applause from the board and the superintendent, who praised the students’ leadership and said activities such as mock trial and the school play complement the district’s emphasis on communication and problem-solving skills.