A record 800 people, including 500 middle and high school students and 300 adults, took part in the
9 th Annual Youth-Adult Summit, held Mar. 8 at Grandview High School. Sponsored by the
Community Asset Project (CAP) with the support of the
Cherry Creek School District, the summit is a student-led conference that builds trusting relationships between youth and adults in our schools and community.
The theme of this year's summit was "Walk in my Shoes" so students and adults took part in many activities and exercises that helped them understand different perspectives. For example, building a structure of toothpicks and marshmallows, based on someone else's design, helped groups of kids and adults appreciate others' ideas and develop teamwork skills.
More than 75 members of the Denver-area Rotary International led workshops focusing on ethics. Students and adults discussed real-life situations that present ethical challenges and talked about different ways to handle ethical dilemmas. They also took the Rotary Four-Way Test, which asks the following questions about what we think, say and do:
- Is it the truth?
- Is it fair to all concerned?
- Will it build good will and better friendships?
- Will it be beneficial to all concerned?
Finally, keynote speaker
Sean Swarner, a two-time cancer survivor who has climbed the tallest mountain on all seven continents, inspired the crowd with a message of hope and perseverance. He shared his simple philosophy for overcoming life's obstacles; "keep climbing"!
Cherry Creek Schools Superintendent
Monte Moses thanked all the people who participated in the summit. "This 2008 Youth-Adult Summit was a big success thanks to your support and assistance," Moses said. "Your efforts demonstrated to the Cherry Creek School District youth how much adults in our community care about them."
Team Summit 2009 is looking for high school youth to lead the event next year. For more information, contact Shelly Caviness at
shellyk23@hotmail.com