W+H sophomores Emily O’Neill ’27 and Cameron Williams ’27 were proud to represent Wardlaw+Hartridge at the Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership Conference last weekend.
The HOBY flagship program welcomes school and community nominated high school sophomores to 3–4-day seminars each spring and summer. These student ambassadors participate in facilitated dialogue and abilities-based workshops to develop awareness of their leadership strengths and an understanding of their leadership values. Through these dynamic activities with their peers, students hone their skills and learn to recognize, amplify and collaborate with the diverse strengths of others. Held on college or university campuses, these programs give students a taste of college life while they dive into an engaging leadership development curriculum.
According to Sarah Honan, Director of College Counseling, HOBY candidates are passionate about their communities, have leadership potential, understand and relate to the experiences of others. are curious and eager to learn, interested in service, adaptable and self-reflective, enjoy collaborating with others and have a strong sense of integrity.
“HOBY was an outstanding experience and I felt so honored to be chosen as a representative of W+H and to be able to sit in a room with such an amazing group of young leaders,” Emily said. “I got to learn leadership skills in different areas, the importance of a balanced team and made lasting relationships with other ambassadors. We all had so much fun getting to know all of the participants and volunteers as well as the inspiring keynote speakers that gave their time to teach us about their stories and the energy of the seminar made everything 10 times more fun. I can’t wait to use the skills I’ve learned in my future at W+H and beyond.”
“HOBY was such an incredible experience as it allowed me to meet new people that shared my drive to lead,” Cameron added. “Each group had three volunteers who supported us, and they'd all been through HOBY when they were sophomores. Even the speakers, some of whom founded non-profits, million-dollar companies and managed communications for US senators, all graduated through the same program. The theme that was ingrained into our heads was that we were not too young to make a difference; we were not just the leaders of tomorrow, but the leaders of now. It felt great to be representing W+H with students from all over the state, and it only took three days to be inspired for the future surrounded by others working together to make an impact.”