This year’s Leadership Institute will feature a new group of young leaders committed to leadership and service who will not only manage the conference but serve as special ambassadors of the Tavis Smiley Foundation.



This year’s Leadership Institute will feature a new group of young leaders committed to leadership and service who will not only manage the conference but serve as special ambassadors of the Tavis Smiley Foundation.

The foundation is proud to announce the selection of the 2011- 2013 National Youth Advisory Council. The 12 members, ranging from age 15 to 18, were selected in March and this summer will be introduced at the Institute. 

The members are Amber Murray (Hamilton High School, Los Angeles, CA); Maxine Dior Chapman (South Hills High School, Covina, CA); McKenzie Conner (Towson High School, Randallstown, MD); Camille Fonseca (Crossroads High School,  Santa Monica, CA); EJ Fortenberry (Crossroads High School, Santa Monica, CA); and Lamar Howard (Long Beach Poly High, Long Beach, CA).

The other members include Samaiya Hoyle (Long Beach Poly High, Long Beach, CA); George Kilpatrick III (DeWitt High School, DeWitt, NY); Anthony Perry (St. Francis High School, Louisville, KY); Sadiyah Sabree (The Agnes Irwin School, Philadelphia, PA); Kaya Savannah (Houston Academy for International Studies, Houston, TX); and Ronald Taylor (Holy Trinity Diocesan, Hempstead, NY).

The council members were chosen based on their academic achievement, community service, essay submissions and recommendation letters.

“We are proud of the students who were selected and we look forward to their leadership contributions and individual growth during the next three years,” said Vonda Paige, executive director.

The National Youth Advisory Council program began in 2002 with the foundation identifying outstanding alumni to help design, create and implement its annual leadership training conference. The goal was to ensure that the program reflected youth perspectives on issues and content to support the foundation’s mission.

Members serve for three years and work directly with the foundation staff.

To date 52 students have participated in the program. All have since graduated high school and have graduated or are attending college. Three past council members have served on the foundation’s board of directors.

Registration is open for the Leadership Institute which will take place July 21-25 at UCLA. The five-day conference will include a teen town hall meeting moderated by Tavis Smiley, a community service project, and workshops on college planning, financial literacy and teen health issues. For more information visit: www.etouches.com/2011LeadershipInstitute or www.youthtoleaders.org.