High School Students from First Ring Schools in Cleveland Partner with Columbus Area Students to Work on Becoming Leaders in their Schools

The First Ring Student Leadership Institute met virtually for its fifth session during the 2021-22 school year on Thursday, January 27. This was a joint meeting with the Ohio State University Student Research Consortium. Working on becoming leaders in their own schools, each high school team has spent the year working on an issue in their community that they have chosen to investigate and research.

The five-hour session was a mixture of everyone together and breakout rooms. The breakout sessions gave the students opportunities to have interactive discussions about their research while learning more about research methods such as data analysis and identifying key findings. 

Both groups listened to speaker Clark Kellogg talk about leadership. Kellogg has spent 14 years as a CBS Sports NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship Analyst. His overall message to the group focused on personal growth and the three things he thinks are necessary for it: Grace, Truth, and Time. Kellogg said, “personal growth is foundational to who we are and who we can be as leaders.” After his presentation, the students were able to ask questions and then they were given thought-provoking prompts to come back to later in the day.

At the opening of the session two high school seniors from the Ohio State University Student Research Consortium spoke about how much they enjoyed being a part of the group. “The collaborative is such a wonderful way to get involved in the community and it really taught us at Thomas Worthington how to take initiative, how to approach issues and work with other people,” said Thomas Worthington High School Senior Harini Subramanian. Another student touched on what he has learned so far. “This collaborative has been extremely impactful, not only for me but many different teammates," said St. Charles Preparatory School Senior Andrew Huffman. “I’ve learned more about myself as a leader, as well as how to be a leader.”