The American Council for Polish Culture (ACPC) is scheduling its 12th Youth Leadership Conference (YLC), June 20-26, 2010 in Washington, DC according to Committee Chair Mrs. Irena Mirecki. The Conference seeks to assist and inspire high school graduates and college students of Polish background, ages 17-26, who are interested in civic and political activism to realize their full potential and assume leadership roles in various fields at all levels of society.
It is an up close and intensive opportunity for young Polish Americans, chosen from all over the U.S., to explore the political processes and interact with national and international leaders in the realms of foreign policy, business, science, education, journalism, culture, and Polish American and East Central European affairs. The general format of the Conference is as follows: mornings – meetings with government and other leaders in their working environments. Afternoons – lectures on related historical, political and leadership topics/processes. Evenings – selected working evenings are spent in informal seminars or dinners with individuals who exemplify leadership qualities in their fields. These sessions are held at such sites as the Library of Congress, U.S. Congress, think tanks, local universities, etc.
In the past, the Youth Leadership Conference has given the students opportunities to meet with U.S. Senators and Representatives, government officials in the departments of State, Commerce, Treasury, Defense, and in Intelligence, nationally known journalists and authors, political scientists, officials of the Embassy of the Republic of Poland, and prominent figures of Polonia, business, and the professions. Past Conferences have included the participation of distinguished personages such as, to name just a few, U.S. Senator Barbara Mikulski of MD; Ohio’s U.S. Representative Marcy Kaptur; former head of National Security Zbigniew Brzezinski; Jim Miklaszewski, Chief Pentagon Correspondent for NBC News; Radek Sikorski, Exec. Dir. American Enterprise Institute’s New Atlantic Initiative and former Polish deputy minister of Defense and of Foreign Affairs; Dr. Michael Waller, political scientist Institute of World Politics faculty; staff members of the Embassy of the Republic of Poland; sculptor Gordon S. Kray who conducted guided bus tour of DC’s Polish art; and many other prominent figures. Students in past conferences visited the White House, Polish Embassy, Library of Congress, U.S. Commerce Department’s Office of Eastern Europe, International Spy Museum, War Department headquarters, and other significant sites.
The Youth Leadership Conference may offer a wonderful opportunity for a parent/grandparent/relative to offer the registration fee of $500 as a meaningful Christmas present to a student in the family. Polonia organizations may also want to consider supporting a bright and ambitious student in their community.
Detailed instructions for applying may be obtained from ACPC website, www.polishcultureacpc.org or by contacting YLC Chair Irena Mirecki, (703) 241-1149, or [email protected].