Youth Leadership Summit Helps Youth/Adult Partnerships Flourish

The San Diego County Office of Education (SDCOE) recently hosted its second Youth Leadership Summit of 2025, bringing together teams of students and adults to explore better ways to engage students and amplify their voice.

Working in school teams, more than 80 attendees from the county and state participated in a variety of activities to support adults in strengthening student partnership in meaningful ways and to encourage them to engage with adults to influence educational decisions.

“It’s so important to have a forum for students and adults to come together,” said Linda Lee Garibay, coordinator and event lead at SDCOE. “If we are creating programs and opportunities for students, we really need to be creating them with young people, because the students are the ones that are closest to the issues in their communities."

She added that students know best what their peers need, and anytime our school leaders work on solutions that are going to benefit the community, it works best when the people closest to the challenge are partners in that effort. 

As an example of that partnership, SDCOE staff co-created the Youth Leadership Summit with a group of high school students who attended the first summit in June worked with SDCOE staff to build out the day's learning.

Jesus Hernandez, a student from Gompers Preparatory Academy, said he got involved because he was interested in leadership and practicing his speaking skills. He wanted students attending the summit to leave with the belief that their ideas matter.  

“Their voices and their experiences, they can own that, and they can use that to create change within their own communities,” he said.

SDCOE staff from the Community Schools and Friday Night Live teams together with students facilitated multiple workshops, including exploring the importance of communication in building authentic adult-youth partnerships and how conditions can shape our choices. The final session introduced two types of campaigns that students can use to raise awareness about issues or causes and encourage change: Photovoice, which combines storytelling and advocacy, and Positive Social Norms campaigns that focus on positive behaviors and encourage more of it. Participants heard presentations on each; then discussed at their tables how to apply what they learned. 

Following the morning workshops, SDCOE brought in partner SD Nights, a county-run program that gives teens a safe, welcoming place to hang out, to offer outdoor activities such as miniature golf, a climbing wall, and video games.

Adam Armas, community schools coordinator at Lincoln High School in San Diego Unified School District, had the idea to create a youth leadership summit on his campus and others. He and a team were invited by Garibay to gather ideas on topics and logistics. 

“It was really helpful for me as an educator because it provided good reminders about letting them [students] lead and trusting them,” Armas said. “Seeing some of the examples from other students on what change actually happened inspired me to be that person to help our students realize they can make those changes too.” 

Lincoln High junior Michaela Day said she got ideas for creating her own youth leadership summit and a reminder to share with students at her school that we’re capable of doing good things, just like adults are.

“I think it’s always amazing to create these spaces where we all come together and recognize what we’re capable of,” Day said.

These summits directly support SDCOE’s efforts to achieve its North Star goal of reducing poverty and increasing belonging, exemplifying the organization’s commitment to equity, student voice, and whole child learning by creating a space where youth are not only heard but positioned as co-leaders in shaping their educational experience and community.

Dr. Erin Mahoney, SDCOE senior director for community schools, says that youth are ready to be part of the change to make education stronger in schools. 

“Imagine if you went to a place every day for hours and you felt like what you said or did, didn't matter. That's what some youth feel like in their school, but it doesn't have to be that way -- in fact, it can be so much better for everyone, if we bring our students in as partners in decision-making,” Mahoney said. “Through opportunities like action projects that create positive community change, students can elevate what they know their peers need support with. The concept sounds simple, but rarely do you see adults and youth learning together how to work together,” she said.

SDCOE is the only county office in the state to host opportunities where adults and students learn together.

Through these summits, SDCOE hopes to equip participants so they can host similar events in their district and at their schools. SDCOE is also providing guidance to local districts, like Sweetwater Union High School District, and sharing the model with other districts in the state to build capacity throughout the county and state.

“I’d like to advertise this opportunity because it’s amazing that we can do this,” said Xavier Velazco, a Gompers Preparatory student on the planning team. “I know many kids that want to do this but don’t know how to or just can’t but this has really allowed us to host this event and be happy doing it,” he said.