One of Pine-Richland Middle School's own attended the National Young Leaders State Conference in Pennsylvania Feb. 28-March 2 and has been invited to attend the Presidential Inauguration on Jan. 9, 2009.

Cameron Barnes joined a very select group of some of the most highly acclaimed students in Pennsylvania to take part in an extraordinary leadership conference sponsored by the Congressional Youth Leadership Council (CYLC).

The National Young Leaders State Conference (NYLSC) in Pennsylvania honors and recognizes outstanding middle school students for their scholastic achievement and leadership potential. Enrollment requirements for attending the Conference are strict, mandating that every scholar who attends must be either personally nominated to attend by a teacher or selected based upon extraordinary academic achievement. PRMS teacher Kathy Deal oversaw the eighth-grader's participation in the conference.

"The aim of NYLSC is to inspire students to recognize their own leadership shills, measure their skills against those of their peers and return home with newfound confidence in their ability to serve as future leaders," said Michael Lasday, executive director of the Congressional Youth Leadership Council.

The intense four-day curriculum focused on eight core leadership power tools: communication, conflict resolution, decision making, goal setting, group dynamics, leadership techniques, project management and self-awareness. With the insight and guidance of highly trained facilitators and the assistance of their peers, scholars work within each activity to hone a plan of personal leadership.

CYLC is an educational organization dedicated to identifying and nurturing leadership in the nation's highest-achieving students. Since 1985, the Council has inspired more than 200,000 young people to achieve full leadership potential. Close to 400 members of the U.S. Congress serve on the CYLC Honorary Congressional Board of Advisors and more than 50 embassies participate in the Council's Honorary Board of Embassies.