2011 Conference reflection essay by Laura Saldivar

This National Service-Learning Conference 2011 reflection essay is by Youth Advisory Council mentor Laura Saldivar, junior at Harry D. Jacobs High School in Algonquin, Ill.

“Everybody can be great, because everybody can serve.” stated Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. This quote is just a small portion of the thousands of different moments that inspired me at the 2011 National Service-Learning Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. Through the workshops, off-site projects, and plenary sessions, I was most inspired by the way Project Ignition youth were able to work together. Project Ignition is a safe teen driving program that is a national campaign sponsored by State Farm. It is a unique program that allows youth to implement different projects within their communities and to collaborate with other P.I. schools.

At the conference I was very proud to see the P.I. schools' vibrant displays and was honored to get to meet the different youth leaders! All of the P.I. youth helped to empower me to do more within my community through their collaboration presentations and booths. I was even lucky enough to see all of the top Project Ignition youth partake in a “safe driving” flash mob! This flash mob demonstrated their commitment towards safe driving and also educated conference attendees on the importance of safe driving.

It was truly an empowering moment to see the schools all coming together for one common cause. Schools were able to share ideas and gain new knowledge from each other. I even witnessed the P.I. schools implementing different distraction games together for conference attendees. I am grateful to have experienced this insightful conference and to have been inspired by so many different youth from across the country. I applaud the National Youth Leadership Council’s outstanding work on planning the conference and I can’t wait to start implementing all of the new ideas I have gained.