A speaker from Manhattan traveled all the way to Appleton North to share a message with the sophomore class: pursue your dreams, succeed in life, and make your dream goals a reality.  

The best equation for this success is planning and desiring to succeed, Ronald Sullivan said.

The main point of the assembly, held from 8-9 a.m. Sept. 13, was to introduce the Student Leadership Program, or SLP, to this year’s sophomores.  The Student Leadership Program is an opportunity for students to develop their leadership skills and find ways to get involved in local businesses and industries. SLP was started by Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation and will allow a member of the program to visit local industries and gather knowledge from the experiences they have there. Appleton North has already received many applications from students.

“I thought the speaker was engaging,” Principal Mr. Huggins said. “He had a lot of experience himself and made a lot of good points about leadership and confidence.”

Mr. Sullivan talked about how getting involved early on in an educational career will be extremely helpful later on.

“Those who wait to get involved will miss out, meanwhile students who get into their area of interest right away will have much more opportunities,” Mr. Huggins said.

“I thought the assembly was interesting,” Sophomore Helen Zhou said. “The Student Learning Program was presented to us in a unique and enjoyable way, and I think that the charisma of the speaker really kept people engaged.  Raffles are always a good time!” The end of the assembly featured a raffle that gave away gift cards to popular places like Starbucks.

Altogether the assembly provided examples and tips for sophomores on how to get involved, and the presentation showed them how important it is to get involved with what they are interested in as soon as possible.

“I thought the speaker, Mr. Sullivan, did a really good job emphasizing the importance of the future without making it seem scary,” Carl Zuleger said. “His sense of humor and charisma made him relatable to us teens, or to me at least.  He really made me realize I can do things I like to do and am successful in, even if I have to get a little creative.”