In March, students from the PUSD’s Student Think Tank attended and presented at the Student Power Summit, the only national conference dedicated entirely to student agency. The Think Tank, a student leadership program developed in partnership between PEF and PUSD, was a natural fit for a conference built around the idea that young people should have a strong sense of agency over their own education, a value that sits at the heart of everything PEF does.
The Student Power Summit, held at the California Endowment Center in Los Angeles, brought together students, educators, and researchers from across the country to explore student agency, the idea that young people should have meaningful ownership over their own learning. For the Student Think Tank members who attended, the two-day experience offered a glimpse into what that kind of education can feel like in practice.
Under the guidance of Sehba Sarwar, PEF’s Student Engagement Manager, five PUSD students offered a workshop at the summit called “Student Voices in Policy: The Past, the Present, and the Future.” Students talked about how PUSD has worked to build real student leadership structures and why that work matters for equity and community.
For the students who attended, the summit was a chance to connect with peers from around the country and share their own experiences at a national platform. The team is busy this spring. On April 15, PUSD Student Think Tank and Assembly/Council are hosting their own second student-led conference, Leaders of Progress: Cultivating the Next Generation of Trailblazers, at Pasadena City College.
The Pasadena Educational Foundation is proud to support the Student Think Tank throughout the year and helped make their attendance at this year’s summit possible.
