More than 40 Sidney Central School District students in leadership roles recently took part in a daylong leadership seminar facilitated by Appointed to Lead.
The seminar gave the group of students, who ranged in grades from 9-12, the chance to team up with other students in different grades.
“This allowed us more involvement,” said freshman Altearya Dougherty, who noted the seminar was especially helpful for those in student government making the jump from eighth grade to ninth grade. “A lot of us are new to a lot of this stuff. We’re definitely putting in more time and have more input than when we were in eighth grade.
“Coming in with a lot of the older students, we were nervous and didn’t want to speak up,” she continued. “But here, we’re sharing things. We’re more comfortable and more confident in this environment.”
Appointed to Lead is a company created to help people grow as leaders. Founded in 2021 by Stuart Gordon, the company customizes programs and instruction to instill belief in everyone they work with to show they are capable of leading, according to the company website.
Gordon, along with KeJuan Weaver who joined the company in 2023, led the day’s activities.
“Working with schools, we work to inspire, equip, empower and allow students to see themselves as leaders,” Gordon said. “We help students become the leaders they were meant to be.”
Gordon and Weaver were both teachers before embarking on this path. Gordon was a math teacher, and Weaver spent time in several different areas, including elementary, math, and physical education.
Weaver said if he was going to leave the teaching field, he needed to make sure it was a path where he could help students embrace the aspect of making learning more fun.
“How do we instill life skills to kids in a fun way? With hands-on learning we are engaging and learning at the same time,” he said. “Ideally, once they have ideas, hopefully it inspires them to reach for more. Leadership is not for a select few, it’s for everybody.”
Over the course of the day, Sidney students learned aspects of leadership, as well as activities to work within groups to strengthen their own abilities. Each activity challenged students to not just work with one another, but to bring out their own leadership skills and styles.
“There are many aspects of being a leader and more than one way to lead others,” junior Ian Moodley said. “There’s a wide variety of things to do to help.
“Anyone can be a leader,” he continued. “It doesn’t matter age, popularity, or your roots. Anybody can be a leader if you strive to be one. Everybody has their own role in group settings. It’s not just one set thing.”
One of the activities included using a kit to build the tallest structure. Students took on different roles within the activity to try and see how high they could get the structure. The students worked to one another’s strengths, coming up with different ways to build and solidify the structure.
And age didn’t play a major factor. Seniors were not pushing younger students away because of the age difference. The groups worked with one another to accomplish a common goal.
Working with different age groups is extremely important, senior Michael Morrissey said. Especially to the younger grades.
“We got to work with younger students,” he said. “It’s super important for the younger students and they are working with others where the age gap is bigger. It’s nice for us to meet the younger kids and work in a team with people you know nothing about. That is one of the best ways to get something out of this.”
Morrissey said some parts of this seminar compared to other leadership conferences he has attended, but the interaction stood out.
“The best thing is that it’s very interactive,” he said. “Teamwork plays a huge role in a lot of things and I like how they break it down.”
Sophomore Rori Cutting said the day helped her prepare for the future. Some of the items she said she learned was to better understand people and community, as well as how to work more easily with people in a team setting.
“I’m going to grow as a leader and a person,” she said. “It equipped me with the tools inside and outside of school.”
This seminar is one the district is proud to have hosted, Superintendent Eben Bullock said.
“Empowering high school students with leadership opportunities isn't just about preparing them for the future—it's about giving them the tools to shape it,” Bullock said. “When students are trusted to lead, they discover confidence, purpose, and the ability to inspire others. The commitment of Stuart and KeJuan to growth and leadership is a powerful reflection of what’s possible when young minds are given the chance to lead.”
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