First 'We Act' Youth Summit held in Chicago
CHICAGO (WLS) -- Students from across Chicagoland gave up part of their weekend to spend it in class for the first ever Illinois "We Act" Summit.
They explored the importance of leadership and volunteerism. The program is inspiring them to take that knowledge and turn it into action in their own communities.
Outside Theodore Roosevelt High School there were signs pointing students inside.
Justin Carmickle walked from one classroom to another to attend the "summits" he had signed up for on Saturday.
"What I want older people to understand about younger people is that younger people still have a mature thought about the world, about society about who they want to be," the high school senior said.
Students from all over Illinois attended the summit for a purpose, to find the local and global causes which spark their interest.
"This is what young people want to do," said Francie Schnipke Richards, Director of Illinois, Free the Children. "They generally do care about these issues. They don't often feel like they have the opportunity or the resources to do meaningful things."
More than 500 schools have already signed up for the program called "We Act." The group fosters young people not only in support of just their community causes but work outside of those borders.
Richards is the director of the state's Free the Children and she's surprised at how quickly schools have signed up to participate and students have responded.
"They will realize that it's not just them, that this passion that they have for their community or this passion that they have for social justice around the world, it's not just them or their club or their school," she said. "It's a movement of young people that they are a part of."
Carmickle joked he didn't have a specific route after graduation, except that he wants to study medicine.
What adults hope is that a classroom discussion like this one may lead him and fellow students on a journey toward a more direct path than they had before.
The students attending today can earn a ticket to attend "We Day" on April 30, when they will celebrate what they've accomplished and hopefullly be inspired to continue their work.
