Two New Leadership Opportunities for Girls

Are you a high school junior or senior looking for summer growth opportunities? You might want to look into these programs I just learned about courtesy of the Northwest Girls Coalition.

The first is the Student Leaders Program through the Bank of America’s Charitable Foundation, which is open to high school juniors and seniors who have a passion for improving their community. The program aims to “put passion into action” by providing selected students with an 8-week paid internship at a nonprofit organization, as well as an all-expenses paid week-long Student Leadership Summit in Washington, DC where they’ll gain civic, social, and business leadership skills. Interested? Fill out the online application here (deadline is January 12, 2011).

The second opportunity is the Bezos Scholars Program at the Aspen Institute, which will award twelve pairs of top public high school juniors and educators a seven-day, all-expenses-paid scholarships to attend the Aspen Ideas Festival next summer. To be eligible for the program, the student and educator team must be independent thinkers, demonstrated leaders, and engaged community member, and come from a public high school (including charter and magnet schools) at which at least 25 percent of students are eligible for the free/reduced lunch program. The school must offer Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, or the opportunity to take college/community college courses.

To qualify, student applicants must be public high school juniors during the 2010-11 academic year who: demonstrate leadership in school and community, have a GPA of 3.5 or higher and have scored exceptionally well on PSAT/SAT/or ACT, are enrolled in Advanced Placement/International Baccalaureate/college classes, and are legal U.S. citizens or permanent residents of the U.S.

Visit the Bezos Family Foundation website to review the school and scholar criteria, view videos, and download the program flyer, application form, and an FAQ. Deadline for applications is February 11, 2011.