Southlake Kids Interested in Leadership Wrap Up the 2023 Program

The eighth annual Southlake Kids Interested in Leadership (S.K.I.L.) Awards Reception occurred at the Marq Southlake last week, where the City of Southlake City Council and staff, C.I.S.D. Trustees and the Southlake Chamber of Commerce convened to honor the 2023 S.K.I.L. class. 

Throughout the year, the students delved into various aspects of the City of Southlake’s financial operations, budgeting practices, economic development strategies, urban planning initiatives, and the city’s safety and security, which included a behind-the-scenes tour of the Southlake Fire and Police Department Headquarters. 

The students also participated in a captivating Business Literacy Day workshop, where they had the opportunity to hear and learn from Mayor Huffman on the profound significance of public speaking and what makes an excellent presentation. The students also gained valuable insights from prominent businesses within the Southlake Chamber of Commerce, including Cornerstone Wealth Strategies, Selph Marketing, and Carther Deluca, where they learned crucial skills such as marketing, budgeting, and legal compliance for a business. 

The youth leadership groups’ adventures continued as they took a trip to Austin to tour the Texas State Capitol, where they explored the Legislative Reference Library, the Member’s Lounge, and the revered Texas State Cemetery. During their visit, they got to have lunch and visit with Representative Giovanni Capriglionne and former Representative Gonzales and hear about the 88th Legislative Session.

Their unwavering commitment and dedication throughout the program garnered well-deserved recognition, with each S.K.I.L. member receiving a distinguished plaque and certificate at last week’s reception. The Southlake Chamber of Commerce also presented Carter Weiss as the 2023 S.K.I.L. Scholarship award recipient for his exceptional engagement and remarkable leadership within the program.

In expressing his gratitude, Weiss emphasized, “…if I were to identify two phrases that would ideally encapsulate the experience of participating in S.K.I.L., the first would most likely be …leadership at all levels…[because] the opportunity to have a window into leadership at the state, the city planning and municipal services, the small business, and the multinational corporation levels offered a tremendous breadth of experiences. The second phase would be ‘learning to learn’.”

We look forward to seeing what our future community leaders accomplish and wish them all the best in their future endeavors! 

SKIL students listed in alphabetical order: Andrea Aguilar Villalobos, Anacapri Ciccone, Carter Weiss, Charissa Wang, Cole Findlay, Dillan DeLugo, Elizabeth Grace Knight, Ford Renner, Greta Neiman, Jaiden Mehta, Jonathan Jose, Katalin Burtea, Ketan Tamirisa, Mateo Bryce, Matthew Blount, Nicole Beres, Nikhil Reddy, Raine Ducey, Safiy Islam, Sahasra Kandukuri, Shreeya, Gogia, Taksheel Aileni, William Hao, and Yuki Pilon.

If you would like to know more about the Southlake Kids Interested in Leadership program or are interested in applying for the next school year, please visit our website.