By M. Mutraw

The Youth and Leadership Development Program was formed by the Burmese Community Center for Education (BCCE) in the summer of 2011. The Program aims to empower young people in the Burmese community to attain leadership roles and maintain civic commitment. We believe that achievement of a democratic society as a whole cannot be realized apart from the abilities of its citizens. Civic education, social justice, and mental and physical health are the components of the project, in addition to math and reading.

For Summer 2012, the Youth and Leadership Development Program will continue based on the format used in 2011 which includes the intent to encourage and engage the students in the democratic process through activities that are most relevant to them in their daily life. BCCE aims to organize a series of workshops that promote and facilitate dialogues around issues of equity, democracy, education, civics and leadership. They will participate in literature discussions, reflective writings, and critical thinking activities.

“A better life” offers not just a good job, but also offers both material prosperity and mental and physical freedom. More education for members of our community means more freedom for them to enjoy. We believe that freedom can be achieved through education.

The underlying message for our students is that if they are to succeed in this increasingly competitive environment, they need to be trained for leadership. If leadership is the catalyst through which positive changes occur, then we must enable our community to create positive change through the leadership we have trained. Undoubtedly, a new generation of leaders is needed to build local partnerships for managing change in increasingly diverse communities in Indianapolis and beyond.

We also believe that leadership is a process in which an “individual learns to influence a group of individuals to achieve a common goal.” As part of an integrated studies program, the YLD Program includes a Summer Freedom Trip (SFT) to our nation’s Capital, Washington, DC and New York City. SFT2012 will be sponsored by the Oberdier Ressmeyer LLP in NYC.

In the nation’s Capital, Washington, DC, students will get to visit the world’s class museums such as the Smithsonian Institutions, the United States’ Congress, and the Holocaust museum. The visit to New York City would include a tour of Federal Court House (to be provided by a federal judge) and the United Nations.

Our intention is for the students to enjoy the freedom to learn through traveling and seeing.