United Way of Northern Arizona — YES! Empowering Teens to Lead with Purpose

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The students created “Me Maps” to explore their interests and learn how valuing their unique qualities can help them form friendships that are truly authentic – and to lead with confidence. When the Me Maps pieces from each student were put together, they formed a heart.

Brandy Stuhan, Clinical Director of Coconino County Health and Human Services Youth Behavioral Health, discussed the importance of self-regulation and recognizing how their brains and bodies react to stress.

“If I pay attention to my body and the tension that is happening, I can give my brain a few extra seconds to make a good decision,” she said. “As a leader, being able to regulate myself helps me build relationships and make better choices.”

He shared his personal journey from growing up in Compton and being involved with gangs to becoming a youth detention officer and mentor. His dual messages resonated deeply with the students: that overcoming barriers is possible and that their current circumstances need not define their futures.

Finally, Gracie Rechkemmer, Community Program Coordinator for Northern Arizona University’s Center for Service and Volunteerism, encouraged students to develop their leadership skills through community service. She challenged them to work together on a proposal for a community project that United Way of Northern Arizona could fund and give them the opportunity to put their leadership skills to work – an idea that drew enthusiastic interest from the group.

The summit concluded with a leadership panel featuring Coconino County Supervisor Jeronimo Vasquez; UWNA board member and nonprofit consultant Sandi Ernst Perez; UWNA President & CEO Liz Archuleta; and Lowell Observatory Director of Operations Kyler Kuehn. Each shared personal insights into what leadership means to them and how it shaped their careers.

Feedback from both students and chaperones was overwhelmingly positive — especially from rural schools that don’t often have access to such events.

“I appreciated hearing all of the different stories that the presenters shared about their leadership journey,” said one student. “It made me excited to think that I already have some of these skills.”

Another added, “I liked hearing everyone’s different views on what leadership was — it showed how everyone can have different personalities but still be united under one cause.”

The YES Leadership Summit was just the first in a series of conferences and workshops UWNA plans to host across northern Arizona to help young people discover their voice, their value, and their capacity to lead.