Growing Leaders: Year Two of the ESLC
A few years ago, an idea began to take root in my mind. What if our 6th graders could step into genuine leadership roles within the elementary school? Not just in name, but in meaningful, community-shaping ways? I envisioned a space where our oldest elementary students could challenge themselves, build real relationships with younger kids, and model the kind of servant-hearted leadership we hope every student aspires to.
From that vision, the ESLC (the Elementary Student Leadership Coalition) was born.
We’re now in year two, and I’ve learned so much along the way. One thing stands out above all else: 6th graders bring exactly the right kind of enthusiasm for this work. They show up ready.
This year, students meet regularly in one of three teams: the Community Building Team, the Service Team, and the Chapel Team. Each group of about ten students has taken ownership of planning and executing an intentional, school-wide activity. With some guidance along the way, these students took ownership of the process in a way that made it genuinely their own.
Watching them work has been one of the highlights of my year. The Community Building Team designed a school-wide scavenger hunt that paired older students with younger grades, sparking friendships and laughter along the way. The Service Team has adopted the garden area on the south end of our building and is planning a garden cleanup session next week to transform it into something beautiful and welcoming for everyone. And the Chapel Team is preparing to share their presentation in our final elementary Chapel of the year.
This is what student leadership looks like when you trust kids to rise to the occasion. And rise they have.
At its heart, the ESLC is about more than scavenger hunts and garden cleanups and chapel presentations. It’s about helping students discover what they’re capable of when they’re given real responsibility and empowered to run with it. We believe that each of these students has been uniquely gifted, and this program is one small way of helping those gifts come alive in service to others. My deepest hope is that the confidence, empathy, and sense of purpose these students have built this year will follow them right through the doors of junior high. They are leaving elementary school not just as older students, but as leaders, and I can’t wait to see what God has in store for them next.
