On Sunday, September 29th, 2024 I had the amazing opportunity to volunteer with the Central York Leadership Group at MPP Dawn Gallagher Murphy’s 3rd Community BBQ. The event had a great turnout of around 500 people, and I made some invaluable connections with community leaders. I had the chance to connect with Premier Doug Ford; MPP Dawn Gallagher Murphy; Deputy Mayor Tom Vegh; and Jacob Gal, Director of Operations at York Pride!
Shad Canada promises “the best summer FOR their lives” to grades 10-11 students from all across Canada with an inclination towards STEAM-E, complete with a Design and Entrepreneurship Project, Experiential Learning Opportunities, and Team Building.
I had the pleasure of attending the 2024 ShadAnywhere program this July in partnership with Athabasca University, a fully online post-secondary institution based in Alberta. My experience exceeded the expectations I had, giving me exposure to a wide range of learning material in a multitude of learning styles. Shad has gifted me with the confidence, communication, leadership skills and expansive network I need to take my talents and passions and aim for the stars.
Newmarket High School hosted its 17th annual Relay For Life Event for the Canadian Cancer Society on May 16, 2024. As the Recruitment Coach, I had the opportunity to work with our incredible team of students and dedicated Staff Advisors to promote school-wide fundraising and help put on the final day of celebration and commemoration. I also lead the school team for students who did not have a team to fundraise with, called the “New Martians.” Together we fundraised over $3,500 dollars through bake sales, bracelet sales, and reaching out to friends and family.
The Central York Leadership Group (CYLG) is a non-profit organization dedicated to encouraging high-school students to take on civic roles in their community. On April 20, 2024, the CYLG hosted its first Career Carnival to provide youth with information about potential career pathways while engaging in fun carnival games. As the Event Chair of the CYLG, I conceptualized and structured the event from start to finish. I learned a great deal about formal event planning, and was able to understand the importance of both anticipating situations and taking initiative on the spot.
I had the honour of being nominated by my school as the grade representative for another Student Outreach Meeting on Friday, April 19, 2024. Student Outreach Meetings are where leaders from across York Region meet to discuss matters that impact students at the board level.
On March 22, 2024, the Newmarket High School Debate Team engaged in a debate collaboration with Dr. G. W. Williams Secondary School. As the president of NHS Debate, I sought out this interschool opportunity to promote a culture of meaningful engagement within York Region.
As the president of my school’s Debate Team, I have presented several competitive opportunities to our club, one of them being the Ontario Ethics Bowl, hosted by the University of Toronto on February 3, 2024. I was my team leader for “The Quackers,” but as a whole, I had the opportunity to mentor a total of nineteen participants from Newmarket High School that were split amongst three teams.
As the Event Chair of the Newmarket Youth Leadership Group, a not-for-profit organization, the first big event we planned for the 2023-2024 school year was a Networking Conference called “Empowering Youth Leaders.” Being a leader can seem daunting and scary, but when I came up with the idea for this event, I wanted to showcase that anybody can be a leader.
