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Mount Carmel School holds student leadership retreat
While most teenagers slept in on Saturday, Aug. 30, Mount Carmel School’s student leaders got up bright and early to participate in the school’s Student Leadership Retreat. Held every year, the retreat helps students grow as leaders and gives them the opportunity to work together to plan all school activities for the school year.
The retreat was facilitated by school president Galvin Deleon Guerrero, who started with a prayer and an energizer, followed by a short talk about leadership. In his talk, Deleon Guerrero shared what he learned over the years in various leadership positions, including serving as a member on both the Public School System’s Board of Education and Northern Marianas College’s Board of Regents. “Remember that, as a leader, you’re not a lone ranger; it doesn’t matter where you want to go and where you go if you don’t have people following you,” said Deleon Guerrero. Quoting Barbara Kellerman, he said: “Followers are more important to leaders than leaders are to followers. That’s why you have to learn how to motivate people to follow you.”
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- MCS Junior Class officers at the Student Leadership Retreat. From left to right: Thomas Manglona II, Emiri Iwai, Catheryn Javier, Amalina Evangelista, Lance Deleon Guerrero, and Jonathan Pangelinan. (Contributed Photo)
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- MCS Theatre Club leaders at the Student Leadership Retreat. Clockwise from front: Keona Camacho, Aysia Santos, Stefani Tagabuel, You Jin Jun, Zeno Deleon Guerrero, Adviser Galvin Deleon Guerrero, and Jaqueline Doctor (Contributed Photo)
Students then watched a couple of video clips about motivating and following, including one clip by Dan Pink who explained that traditional rewards and punishments are not always as effective as people think. Instead, Pink argued that when people are given autonomy, the time to build mastery, and a compelling purpose, they will outperform anyone bribed with rewards or threatened with punishments.
After the videos and a short break, student leaders and their teacher advisers got down to work, planning out the entire school year. Going through week by week, Student Council officers and vice principal for Student Affairs Ida Bahillo worked with clubs, classes, and organizations to schedule activities for the year. Whenever conflicts emerged, students were ushered aside to work out alternatives and solutions. By the end of the retreat, student leaders had successfully planned out the entire year.
Student Council president Maria Fe Andrea Lazaro was pleased with the results of the retreat. “I think it’s a great way to expand our leadership skills,” she said. “It was great because the student leaders learned how to lead.” (MCS)
