By Amalia Kortright, For The Tribune
LIVINGSTON — Two 2016 Summer Leadership Camps being hosted by the University of West Alabama’s Center for Achievement, Retention, and Enrichment Services. The first camp will be held from July 18-22, and the second camp will last from July 25-29.
The camps are open to male, African-American students who are rising high school seniors. Camps are limited to students who are attending high school in Choctaw, Clarke, Greene, Hale, Marengo, Perry, Pickens, Sumter, or Wilcox counties.
Students must be selected by their high school counselors before completing an application process. Approximately 20 students were selected to attend each camp. All expenses are paid, including room and board, use of facilities, field trips, and speakers.
The camps are intended to foster leadership skills, critical thinking skills, and team-building skills. It also seeks to improve the motivation and self-esteem of students who are participating.
According to program director of the UWA CARES Grand and Director of Institutional Effectiveness and Retention Angel Jowers, “The camps are the first of their kind at UWA. The camps will strengthen leadership skills and potential in young men who can have a significant impact on their schools and communities.”
Presentations from UWA faculty and administration about leadership skills, a class on designed to introduce students to a college classroom setting, a class designed to help students transition from high school to college and a business luncheon with UWA alumni are featured as part of the 2016 Leadership Summer Camps.
Team building activities such as scavenger hunts and basketball tournaments are also part of the camps’ itinerary.
UWA CARES and the 2016 Summer Leadership Camps are fully funded by a grant from the U.S. Dept. of Education. For additional information, contact Hayley Johnson at (205) 652-5542 or Lasandra Patrick at (205) 652-3472.