For Immediate Release: July 22, 2022 

The City of Alexandria invites high school students to register for the Ninth Annual Alexandria Youth Leadership Conference, from August 9-11. This free hybrid conference, open to rising ninth through 12th graders residing in the City of Alexandria, empowers emerging young leaders by providing training and connecting them to resources in their community. This year’s conference theme is “Lead with Courage.” Eligible students must register for the conference by August 5. 

• The first two days of this three-day conference will be virtual and feature interactive workshops focused on teaching youth how to engage, lead, and advocate for issues in our community.  

• To facilitate youth-adult partnerships, the last day of the conference will include an afternoon networking session with community leaders, including City Council and School Board representatives, City Board and Commission leaders, non-profit executives, and City staff. 

• This networking session aims to provide a forum in which organizations can connect directly with the City’s youth leaders to share volunteer and leadership opportunities and recruit youth who have the necessary skills to participate in a leadership position on a board or commission.  

• Community leaders interested in attending this networking session must register by August 5. 

Students who attend the conference in its entirety are eligible to receive a $20 gift card. Youth that participate in the conference will also receive updates throughout the year about internships, volunteer and leadership opportunities and other ways to get involved in the Alexandria community. 

In addition to skill-building, the Youth Leadership Conference helps to strengthen essential building blocks, which are based on the 40 developmental assets of internal and external assets young people need to succeed. These assets include a sense of feeling valued by their community, self-esteem, recognizing themselves as a resource to others and planning and decision-making. 

This event is hosted by the Alexandria Campaign on Adolescent Pregnancy, the Alexandria Sexual Assault Center, the Alexandria Library, and the Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition of Alexandria. 

Visit alexandriava.gov/ACAP for more information about the Youth Leadership Conference. 

For inquiries from the news media only, contact the Office of Communications & Public Information at newsroom@alexandriava.gov or 703.746.3969. 

For reasonable disability accommodation, contact maurice.tomdio@alexandriava.gov or call 571.384.5244, Virginia Relay 711. 

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This news release is available at alexandriava.gov/go/3815.