Leadership Awards
The Most Outstanding Student awardee earns an NGCSU leadership scholarship worth up to $4,400. To qualify for the award and scholarship, participants must demonstrate immense academic and leadership potential. The leadership award categories are listed below, and a detailed description of the leadership curriculum is provided here.
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Team problem solving on the Leadership Reaction Course at Pine Valley. |
The leadership curriculum is comprised of adventure-learning components and classroom discussions. The adventure-learning components are high and low ropes courses and the Leadership Reaction Course elements at NGCSU's Pine Valley facility. The rock climbing, rappelling, and hiking trip to Mt. Yonah is another feature of what Director Robb Sinn calls "the leadership adventure."
Classroom discussions of leadership center around recent novels and movies. General classroom discussions of leadership include examples from recent books and movies like Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings and TV's hit action drama "24." The more in depth leadership discussions involve analyzing characters, events and themes in the novel Ender's Game by Orsen Scott Card, and the leadership essay must include evidence and examples from the novel .
"The leadership sessions are most valuable ones for these kids in terms of their future," Sinn says. "They are all talented academically, and they will find success in college. But the leadership sessions really prepare them for life beyond college by showing them how work effectively in team-based environments, how to assume important roles, how to prepare for leadership, and how to develop highly functional teams. Those are the skills that will really help them excel in life and career."
The following is a list of leadership awards that were offered at Summer Honors 2006 or 2007. "We are constantly updating the competitions and the award categories," Sinn says, "But you can get the general idea from this list of awards."
Best Overall Leadership. Participants have a myriad of leadership tasks and activities in which to excel. This award is given to the person who demonstrates most consistently throughout the camp and across all activities the most leadership skill. In a camp filled with students who will one day be leaders, this one of Summer Honors most prestigious awards.
Leadership Excellence on LRC. The Leadership Reaction Course is a team-based, problem-solving obstacle course. The problems and challenges are more elaborate than typical low ropes elements, but the environment is similar. Each task takes about hour to attempt (and sometimes complete). The tasks are followed by a debriefing in which leadership themes are highlighted. Tasks are structured so that different leadership opportunities arise for different members of the group. The awardee in this category must be an excellent problem solver, strong communicator and must excel at motivating and encouraging teammates.
Best Leadership Essay. Summer Honors participants have the opportunity to read and discuss the novel Ender's Game by Orsen Scott Card. The classroom portion of the leadership curriculum centers on discussing this novel and its leadership themes. The capstone event of the leadership curriculum is this essay contest where participants demonstrate what they've about leadership and use evidentiary statements from the novel to make their points. For Summer Honors 2007, the novelist Orsen Scott Card has agreed to teleconference with our participants and discuss his views on the novel and on leadership.
Leadership Potential. The leadership experience of Summer Honors leaves the biggest lasting impact in the lives of young people. A single leadership award for so many talented young leaders would simply not be fair. The "Leadership Potential" awards identify a male and female who have an abunance of the raw materials needed for leadership. As Sinn said at the 2007 Awards Banquet, "We expect great things from you!"
Team Competition - Best Overall. Points are awarded for Camp Olympics events and the team-based academic competitions. The three members of the top achieving team receive this joint award. Teams that function at the highest level are excellent at shared leadership, dynamic roles, encouraging team communication and problem sovling. The best teams often have the best leaders. |
