Dr. Padilla, Superintendent of Newburgh Schools, sat with a group of students in Ms. Christine McCartney and Ms. Jaqueline Hesse’s class at Newburgh Free Academy, North Campus PTECH Excelsior Academy to discuss their ideas for Youth Summit in the Spring.

 “Far too often adults, with very good intentions, make decisions for you. Those decisions are made thoughtfully and from the experiences that those adults had while sitting in your chair, but a lot of time passes between adolescence and adulthood. We also may not have had the same experiences that you are having right now. And often what is missing is that you have ideas and you have opinions, but there’s a lack of a forum for you to express what you believe is right and what you believe should take place as something that directly impact you.” Dr. Padilla

Multiple students expressed ideas for what an event like this would look like – all ideas included collaboration among all grade levels and all schools throughout the district. Interaction and mentoring between older students and younger students would likely kick off the event, with middle school students having an opportunity for a poster presentation for work they would like to highlight from the year, and a TED Talk type series was proposed for high school students. The primary theme throughout the event would be the history of Newburgh. The event would likely finish with a celebration of the youth in Newburgh with musical performances.

“When you hear your peers articulate something that you’ve been thinking about - something that’s already on your mind, it empowers you to speak up about that topic as well.” Brendin Skakel, 12^th at NFA North Campus, PTECH Excelsior Academy

“We want to do the absolute best for you, but not in absence of you. Your voice needs to be at the table. I don’t have all the answers. I have ideas, I have desires, and I want to hear your input, your ideas, and your desires. You represent some of the very best ideas and that is what our district is all about. Thank you for your commitment and for being the best students you can be.” Dr. Padilla

Aboya Omot and Azariah McLymore (pictured) are two of the project managers for the event. are Every project manager is a senior, and for those who traveled to Ecuador, this is their community impact project for Global to Local.