The CHIEF November 2017

INDIAN SUMMIT 2017

By L i l l i an L yd i g s en

Junior High Leaders from surrounding schools came to Pontiac Township High school to learn leadership skills, develop teamwork, and build a sense of service, in a fun-filled day. Pontiac’s FFA, Key Club, and Student Council run the event known as the Indian Summit. The first summit was last year, in 2016, when a number of high school leaders wanted to build leadership in our high school’s next generation. When asked how the program was developed, Jesse Faber (adviser) replied saying, “We find activities that have them work together.” Included was a challenge course with team building and communication challenges like the A-frames, Whale Watch, and Drop the Ball; all challenging but achievable once you make a plan and figure it out together. Since the Indian summit first started, students in 7th and 8th grade in the surrounding junior highs have been excited for this day. Pontiac Junior High student Ava Nollen said, “It’s an honor to be nominated, and I was very excited to go this year.” Ava is an eighth grader who went to the Indian Summit both years. Some activities might seem simple, but they teach the kids how to take control of a situation or work through a problem .

The activity that was most enjoyed was the scavenger hunt made by Cam Tickle and Kamryn Moore. This focused on businesses and landmarks in uptown Pontiac. Teams took pictures of each item identified by clues. There were many riddles, so many pictures, and so much fun. This also showed all students businesses and landmarks that some students had not been introduced to. Evain Weedling from Pontiac Junior High School said this about his favorite activity, “The scavenger hunt was my favorite activity. I liked the riddles and making new friends.” This is one of many positive comments from the students that went to the Indian summit. If you ask any student that went to the Indian Summit what they learned, most of them would say they learned leadership skills. Well, Makayla Metz from the junior high said, “What I learned was that you need communication and teamwork to accomplish things not just one person.” 10% more kids came to the Indian summit this year than last year, and hopefully this will keep increasing. The students leave with memories of having fun but learning at the same time about skills to help then lead and