Teen Summit
Teen Summit is a biennial week-long Youth Leadership event that brings youth together from each of the 100 Clubhouses internationally and Teen Tech Centers. Youth leaders explore and propose solutions to social issues through the creative use of innovative, high-end technologies. Each Teen Summit takes place on a university campus in Boston, Massachusetts, and includes a college and career fair, collaborative cross-cultural activities, and many other opportunities for educational, career and personal growth.
APPROXIMATELY 250 YOUTH LEADERS plus adult staff and chaperones from various community-based organizations, colleges and sponsoring partners attend Teen Summit every other year. At Teen Summit, the youth leaders participate in a variety of workshops, projects, and team building activities designed to both build technological skills and foster international connections. The youth also learn and grow through their participation in “tracks", designed for the youth to address social issues through creativity and technology. During the week, they create collaborative projects that focus on a specific content area, such as animation, web design, robotics, 3D modeling, and/or video creation and a social issue such as education access, health disparities or gender equity. The goals of the tracks are to:
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build technological skills and awareness
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strengthen leadership and teamwork skills
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foster a sense of positive social action
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increase a sense of self-efficacy
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TEEN SUMMIT IS A VIBRANT OPPORTUNITY that provides many firsts for the teens. Often it is the first time they are leaving their neighborhood, getting on a plane, or staying on a college campus. At Teen Summit, Clubhouse youth leaders not only build hands-on fluency in technology, but also become self-motivated, confident learners through collaborative experiences that spark their interests, expand life skills, and inspire them to become global citizens. Teen Summit seeks to expose youth to new tools and apply these skills to educational and career-related paths; build leadership, communication, and teamwork skills; and build camaraderie among international youth while fostering an appreciation for different cultures.
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