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Trinity hosts leadership conference for high school students

High school students and church youth group leaders from five states took part in the annual 360 Conference April 15-16, hosted by the Emerging Kingdom Leaders program at Trinity College.

The students attended main sessions in the A.T. Olson Chapel and workshops hosted across the Trinity campus. The theme for this year's conference was "Continue the Living Legacy."

The featured speaker at the main sessions was Shane Stacey, national director of ReachStudents, a ministry of the Evangelical Free Church of America. Trinity is affiliated with the EFCA.

Stacey told the students at the conference that the platform for becoming influencers is found in a commitment to Jesus Christ.

"In Christ, our past is secure, our future is secure, and in the power of the Spirit we have what we need for the moment," Stacey said. "But if we're not confident enough, we will always shrink back. Instead of being an influencer, we'll be influenced."

During the second main session on Saturday morning, Stacey referenced John 13, a passage in which Jesus washed the feet of his disciples.

"If you're going to be a part of the movement Jesus started, if you're going to be a person of influence, then you have to (understand) this," Stacey said. "It's never about being valedictorian or the captain of the team. It's never about titles.

"Jesus said that the more power you have, or the more popularity, or the more talent that you have, it is to be used for the benefit of others," Stacey said.

About 160 high school students attended the event, many accompanied by youth leaders from their churches.

First-year Trinity students do much of the planning and staffing for this distinctive event. Some visited the campus for this conference when they were in high school. Topics for discussion during the weekend are designed to develop future leaders for campuses, churches and workplaces.

Emeris Raquel attended two 360 Conferences while a high school student, and now helps stage the event as a Trinity student.

"The students here were just super welcoming," Raquel said. "They were an awesome representation of what Christ would want us to live like. Actions speak louder than words, and I wanted to attend a school that cared about those values."

Spencer Mowbray, a Trinity student in the EKL program, first attended the 360 Conference as a freshman in high school, and returned in subsequent years. It was during that time that he became a Christian and began to appreciate the importance of leadership.

"I finally realized what it looked like to be a leader and follow Christ," Mowbray said. "During my senior year, I began looking at colleges, and Trinity already felt like home."

Trinity freshmen accepted into the Emerging Kingdom Leaders program must agree to provide 1-2 hours of service per week outside their regular course requirements, and they help prepare for the annual conference. They receive a $1,000 scholarship if they maintain at least a 2.5 GPA.

EKL has established a strong leadership culture at Trinity that is rooted in the school's core values.

"We believe leadership and discipleship are closely intertwined, so as you learn more and more about who you are in Christ, you become a person of greater influence," Director of Student Leadership Development Katherine Jeffery said.

"We believe we're all made in the image of Christ, so we all have the capacity to influence."

In addition to the main sessions with Stacey, students selected from 19 workshop sessions in smaller group settings. The workshop gatherings focused on topics such as poverty and slavery, personal integrity, making an impact through athletics, and urban mentorship.

Trinity faculty and staff led many of the workshop discussions, as well as leaders from the local education community.

Marc Abbatacola, executive director of Harvest Christian Academy in Elgin, led a workshop session on how to leave a legacy of faith.

"Every leadership principle you see is about caring," Abbatacola said. He referenced the biblical account of Jesus' feeding of the 5,000, and noted that Jesus wasn't overwhelmed with worry about whether the people had understood his teaching.

"His number-one concern was that it is getting late and these people need to eat," Abbatacola said.

Bob Young, a high school sophomore from Elgin, said the 360 Conference provides unique opportunities to develop leadership skills at an early age.

"It's a growth opportunity," Young said "I want to be an entrepreneur and own my own businesses. The programs here and the worship experiences will help us to become better leaders and influence our communities."

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