Student Leadership
Aligned with the Whitefield Academy mission, the Student Leadership Institute engages members of the Whitefield community in creating and sustaining a culture of lifelong leadership development, training, and education. SLI seeks to empower students to become everyday leaders by facilitating and encouraging opportunities for co-curricular learning, intentional engagement, self-reflection, and skill development. SLI advisors utilize the Habitudes Training Program created by Growing Leaders Inc. This program provides a platform for the advisors to engage with student leaders and equip them for life in the community. The Student Leadership Academy believes in developing visionary, goal-driven, and action-oriented student leaders who put others ahead of self. Through this relational experience, our student-leaders at Whitefield are seeking to become transformational leaders in the community and beyond.
The Student Leadership Institute consists of 11 student-led academies: Broadcast Team, Chick-fil-A Leader Academy™, Hands and Feet Service Academy, Missions Support Team, Pack Ambassadors, Pack Pals, Peer Leadership Mentoring, Student Athletic Leadership Team (SALT), Student Government, Ten Thousand Reasons Leadership Team, and Worship Team. At the beginning of every school year, all upperclassmen have the opportunity to join a leadership academy. All 11 academies are led by faculty advisors who engage with student leaders during Flex Time on Tuesdays and Fridays. The following is a brief description of the leadership academies:
The Broadcast Team provides leadership opportunities for students with an interest in broadcasting, filming, announcing, AV set up, and event programming. This team learns to lead in various elements of Monday Rally News, Sports, and Fine Arts telecasts, and special events like; graduation, all school chapels, and awards ceremonies. The goal of the broadcast team is to empower its members to be servant-leaders who provide quality online experiences that the Whitefield community can easily access.
Advisor: Matthew David
The Chick-fil-A Leader Academy™ is a national high school leadership program empowering students to make an Impact Through Action. In alignment with Whitefield’s mission, The Chick-fil-A Leader Academy™ fosters the development of lifelong leadership skills in students, while emphasizing “Servant Leadership” by placing the priority of “others ahead of self.” Through a year-long curriculum, students learn timeless leadership principles like teamwork, communication, and innovation by engaging in “Leader Labs” held during weekly Flex Time. After each “Leader Lab”, students are challenged to put these principles into practice by participating in experiences such as “The Big Thank You!”, “One Million Book Give-Away”, and “Do Good December.” The year culminates with our students planning and executing an Impact Project benefiting their local community. Students don’t just learn about leadership in the classroom, they live it out by serving and making an impact.
Advisor: Michael Chasteen and Chick-Fil-A Sponsoring Operator, Daniel Lomax
Aligned with Whitefield’s mission, Hands and Feet Service Academy is a group of faith-driven students who seek to serve and organize service projects within the Whitefield community and the Greater Atlanta community. In partnership with local ministries, non-profits, school systems, and churches, Hands and Feet allows Whitefield Upper School students to seek, prepare, and participate in service to bring glory to Jesus Christ. The group tracks and calculates student service hours, and live out our mission to put “others ahead of self.”
Advisors: Caroline Kraehe and Katie Kling
Student leaders on the Missions Support Team are empowered to engage with our domestic and international missions partners and learn to be servant-leaders. The team learns about healthy domestic and international missions programs, while building strong relationships with our three partner ministries. Student leaders support our current mission partners through fundraising. Our three current ministry partners are: Amor y Esperanza School in Ecuador, Fellowship of Christian Athletes in Dominican Republic, and Good Neighbors Inc. in Kentucky.
Advisors: Julie Flores and Zach Justice
The Pack Ambassador program is a student-leadership opportunity for students to represent Whitefield and welcome students considering applying to Whitefield to campus. Students serve by assisting with admission events, tours, and student visit days. Pack Ambassadors develop group management and social skills, gain additional knowledge of Whitefield Academy, and strengthen their leadership qualities. Pack Ambassadors meet monthly to discuss upcoming events and develop ways to welcome and enhance Whitefield’s visitor experience.
Advisor: Carmen Crawford
Pack Pals is a student led organization that allows Upper School students to mentor Lower School students by serving in their classrooms in a variety of ways. Upper School students develop relationships with younger students as they live out Whitefield’s mission of serving “others ahead of self.” Pack Pals meet and serve during weekly flex time. Seniors serve as the leaders of Pack Pals.
Advisor: Eden Gulledge
Aligned with Whitefield’s mission, Peer Leadership Mentoring (PLM) supports and eases students’ successful transition into high school by tapping into the power of older students to create a nurturing environment for incoming students. PLM ensures our senior student leaders effective training and development to provide beneficial support for our freshmen students. Our student peer leaders attend a summer at school retreat in order to build relationships, train, and develop skills for leading freshmen during Flex Time.
Advisors: Rebecca Brown and Jeff Peeples
Student Athletic Leadership Team allows the athletic department the opportunity to develop the hearts and minds of student-athletes. Whitefield’s SALT program ensures student leaders proper training and development through a transformational approach. SALT equips student-athletes for leadership on their teams, activities on campus, and beyond. All student leaders participate in weekly lessons during Flex Time in order to develop relationships, and train and develop skills for leading. Student leaders are also given the opportunity to speak into athletic department policy and initiatives.
Advisors: Janie Mitchell and Everett Pollard
Student Government exists to foster mature, responsible student leadership at Whitefield. Student Government serves as the sounding board for the student body and cultivates positive, authentic WolfPack spirit. Student Government consists of an executive board of a president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, and grade representatives who are elected by the student body with faculty approval. This executive board oversees the grade representatives and is responsible for the leadership of government. Student Government exec board officers are encouraged to take initiative for planning student life events, listening to the student body, and voicing student concerns to the administration. The grade representatives work closely with their classmates to ensure student voices are heard by the executive team and school administration. Student government members strive to be leaders in school spirit and are responsible for planning homecoming and winter week activities, school dances, student life events, and pep rallies.
Advisors: Kelly Jones and Bianca Bishop
The Ten Thousand Reasons Leadership Team is a community of Whitefield students who help with awarding life changing charitable grants that their fellow students apply for on behalf of their chosen charity. Student leaders promote the grant application program, educate the student community on the process and deadlines, share details regarding the current year’s applications and announce grant recipients each year. Additionally, each student on the team has received a grant on behalf of a charity they serve.
Learn more about this program unique to Whitefield Academy at www.tenthousandreasons.org.
The Worship Team exists to provide leadership opportunities for students with an interest in Christian formation through our chapels and Christian life programming. The advisors implement the “experience, empower, and engage” model in order to facilitate growth in student leaders each week. The Worship Team learns to lead in various elements including speaking, music, production, topic development, and presentation. The Worship Team helps lead the annual Night of Worship for the Whitefield community.
Advisors: Allison Duncanson, Corrie Henson, and Laura Nordhues