Building Better Schools: St. Francis de Sales high school offers leadership course

TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) -The class isn’t open to everyone, but it’s highly revered.

St. Francis de Sales High School offers a sophomore leadership course to teach young men leadership, and to get accepted; a peer or teacher must first nominate you.

“The big lesson sophomore year is simply this they don’t see themselves as leaders. They don’t see themselves as leaders. They don’t know their own skills or own strengths, and so the big push sophomore year is speaking into them and saying, ‘you are a leader today. How do we live it out,’ and it takes an entire semester to get that through,” said Father Joseph Newman, leadership instructor.

Sophomore Robert Hinkle said he was excited to be afforded the opportunity.

“I got the news I was accepted into it, and I thought it was a good opportunity for the future and career-wise knowing what to do be a good leader for the school,” Hinkle said.

In this course, students tackle subjects like brotherhood and servant leadership.

“The teachers do a great job of really engaging us and helping us learn about the topics,” said Jameson Heck.

Leadership courses are also offered to juniors and seniors.

“So all of our students get leadership training, and then a group of students works with me sophomore year, junior year, and senior year and small cohorts to go deeper it. It’s a blast to teach because I get to go in there and find out what their interests are, and I get to shift the class depending on where we want to take it,”

Senior year, these students will present everything they’ve learned along the way to faculty and staff.

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