2009 CAIS Student Leadership Conference a resounding success!



For four amazing days, 128 students and 29 faculty advisors from all across Canada came to HSC to attend the 2009 CAIS Student Leadership Conference.  A dedicated group of Grade 12 students spent the previous eight months planning and then running the conference, which takes place every year at one of the participating CAIS schools.

This year’s conference theme was “The Power of One” and its goal was to highlight the impact that one person can have on the world around them.  The student delegates, from seven different Canadian provinces, participated in workshops on Communication, Strengths and Weaknesses in Leadership, Interpretive Dance, and a very special workshop run by the Canadian Olympic Committee.

All of these workshops were developed and run by students from the planning committee and gave the students the opportunity to experience and demonstrate their leadership skills. “The students created a special atmosphere during the conference-one that combined organization with flexibility, positive energy with maturity, and genuine inclusiveness with the ‘Power of One’. In my 20 years of teaching, the 2009 CAIS Leadership Conference is one of the most dynamic student-led events that I have ever encountered”, said Bob Neibert, Head of the Senior School.

Delegates also experienced five guest speakers, all of whom had a similar message, but told it in vastly different ways.  Guest speakers were local youth empowerment organization Absolute Leadership Development Inc; actor and motivational speaker Matt Evans; businessman and philanthropist Ron Foxcroft; youth leadership guru Stu Saunders; and Canadian Olympian Colin Jenkins. 

Each of the student delegates was placed into a “pod” group and given the task of researching a world issue and coming up with an action plan which each and every student could take home with them to address the issue. To assist them with this, the planning committee arranged for each group to visit local organizations throughout Hamilton that deal with these issues on a daily basis.  Relying on already strong HSC connections with such organizations as SISO, City Kidz, and the Wever Community Hub, these visits allowed for amazing and enlightening experiences for every conference delegate.  In turn, the delegates then presented their findings and action plan to everyone else.  These were truly inspiring presentations which clearly demonstrate the amazing potential of the students who attended the conference.

“Everything about the conference was outstanding, from the countless organizational details through to the impressive roster of speakers.  However, what I found to be the most gratifying was the high level of student engagement, as demonstrated by the 130 delegates, as well as by the HSC organizers.  The pod presentations on Saturday afternoon were a highlight. In fact, a number of them were so well done that they moved me to tears”, said Headmaster, Tom Matthews.

Congratulations to Co-Chairs Lora Capobianco, Calum Matthews, Luke McKee, as well as planning committee members David Kwasniewski, Nizar Kubursi, Catherine Lachowskyj, Kelley Prendergast and Bianca Wurster for a job very well done.  Faculty advisors Melissa Mancini and Kris Zelinsky could not be more proud.

When asked about the experience as one of the faculty advisors for the group, Kris Zelinsky said “it has truly been a pleasure and an honour working with these students all through this. I could never have imagined how touching an experience this would end up being and I’m not sure what I could ever be a part of that would top this.  These eight students are incredible people and I can not wait to see what they all do in the future to improve the lives of everyone around them, as they have done this past year for me.” 

On behalf of the organizing committee, many thanks to the faculty and staff of HSC for all their support, in particular the kitchen staff, transportation staff, maintenance staff, Mr. Neibert, and Dr. Matthews.  This was a huge undertaking for all of the College’s resources, but based on the responses from delegates and faculty advisors, HSC was an incredible host.  We would also be remiss if we did not thank each and every family that offered their home for our conference, as 82% of attendees were billeted, all in HSC homes.