Testimonies
As Christian educators, we hold a very powerful weapon in our hands. We have the ability to daily influence the hearts and minds of our students to live a passionate, purpose-filled life that will exalt and expand the Kingdom of God. This is accomplished by training them to be intellectual thinkers in the post-modern era and then putting them in leadership roles.
Student Leadership University has been the #1 resource for us in achieving this goal. Through SLU, our students have been taught by some of the most influential speakers in the country. In July 2005, our students came back from SLU 201, Washington D.C., with an overwhelming hunger for change, in our community and the world. Our staff has had to work extremely hard to keep up with the thirst for knowledge with which our students have returned. Student Leadership University is not a retreat or typical leadership conference; it is, by nature, a challenge to students to take the position of not just existing in a culture but engaging it and transforming it, based upon Biblical principles.
I would strongly insist all Christian schools to consider sending their students to Student Leadership University. It challenges students to find their calling from God and to go out and change the world. Personally, I cannot wait to see what else God is going to do in the lives of my students, who were inspired by having the opportunity to attend Student Leadership University.
Sincerely,
Gerald Porter
Christian School Administrator
My name is Elisa P. and I have been involved with Student Leadership for three years now going on four. Words can not even begin to express the type of changes SLU has made in my life. I have gone from being a Christian who was content and satisfied with all they knew to being a Christian who is always eager to learn more. Through my lessons learned and knowledge acquired at SLU, I have been able to see what God wants for my future. I know His plans are great for me and I can't wait to see what He has in store. Dr. Strack and his family have made an eternal impact on my life, as well as many of the other leaders who have taken part in student leadership 101, 201, and 301. SLU has taught me many lessons and I am very eager to take part in another year of Student Leadership University and next summer head off to Rome for SLU 401.
Sincerely and God Bless You,
Elisa P.
SLU has really meant a lot to me. It's taught me so much and has helped me to be able to step up and take positions of leadership in the different organizations and sports that I'm involved in. At church we've developed a Student Leadership Team and the members of it are students that are going through SLU. We act as leaders for the rest of the youth group and help our youth pastor with his different duties. SLU has helped me to grow in my walk with Christ as well. I've been a Christian since I was 6, but I never really started growing in Christ until after I went to 101. It was that summer that I started doing my quiet times and really seeking after Him. I've grown and learned so much since then. I've started trying to read as much as I can and learn and absorb as much as I can. I just got back from a two-week trip to Germany yesterday and I learned so much while I was there. I've picked up a little bit of German, met some incredible people, visited some very historic sights like where Martin Luther lived while he was in hiding and where he defended his views, and have seen the colors of communism that still haunt East Germany. I also visited Poland and the Czech Republic for a day. SLU has really inspired me to do my best no matter what and to follow my dreams no matter what anyone says. I really appreciate this ministry and I can't wait until next year! Thanks for everything!
In Him,
Sarah L.
I have loved the idea of Student Leadership University from the day I heard about it. I have gotten to go on the first three SLU trips and am excited about the 401 trip next year! I have enjoyed being able to go and hear excellent speakers, travel to new places, plus see things I wouldn't normally get to see. SLU 301 was one of the best trips I have ever been on! I have met so many great friends while at SLU too. It is great to go on a trip with two hundred other kids all seeking to learn more about God and leadership. I can't wait to meet up with my friends again on the 401 trip next year!
The speakers at SLU are always exciting to hear. We got to hear from HRH Prince Michael of Kent, Sir Nicholas Soames, Dr. Jay Strack, and many others. I really enjoyed listening to each speaker as they shared about their lives and things they have learned. Dr. Bob Reccord shared a quote with us and encouraged us to use it as a prayer for our lives. It was about having the strength to go anywhere God leads us just as long as He stays with us. Things will change or be taken away from us in life but we always have God right beside us even when things are hard. I went to Nicaragua on a mission trip not long ago and shared the prayer with some Nicaraguans in church one night. I told them it had spoken to my heart and I wanted to share with others that God is always with us.
Student Leadership University has many great trips planned for young people where you can sightsee and learn. I have gotten to visit the Royal Automobile Club in England , a place not many people get to go see. I love to travel and see new things which made SLU a perfect trip for me. Jay Strack makes sure we enjoy ourselves and still learn about leadership. Student Leadership University has been a wonderful experience for me to learn from other leaders. I think when I'm older I'll come back with SLU as a chaperone because I know how much it has changed my life. Student Leadership University is an amazing experience and I hope more teenagers will go on these trips. I know they will learn and enjoy themselves as much as have with SLU.
Katie B.
Well I started SLU when I was 12. I loved it right away. It was alot of teaching but I was constantly learning something new. having the chance to hear people speak of the caliber that I did is just so overwhelming. Not to mention the places I got the chance to go and see. By the time I got to 301 there were only 3 kids from my church that got to go. So I really got to meet alot of other kids. Like Dr. Jay always says, the things that are going to change you are the places you go, the people you meet, and the books you read. Getting to meet the kids that were there was VERY encouraging. Alot of times you can get very discouraged as a young leader when it seems as if no one wants to follow you so when you get the chance to meet other young leaders who are also trying to do the right things it reminds you that you are not alone. That is what has really touched me this year, meeting the people I did. I am also getting to read a fabulous book called The Secret! that I got from my SLU trip that is really helping me to understand the true meaning of leadership.
Hannah H.
SLU has been a wonderful experience. Through SLU I have got to go places and do things that most teenagers don't get to do and I feel so blessed to be apart of something so amazing! Over the last three years I really have learned a lot at SLU and this summer at 301, in London, I was inspired to put all of the things I have learned into action. I also realized that being apart of SLU doesn't make me a leader, but by coming home and making the choice to do so will. The sites, the places, and the speakers at SLU have been incredible, but nothing was more incredible than God and what he has done in my life and in the lives of so many more teenagers. I have had a desire for years now to help girls younger than me and be an encourager to them in the area of purity. I kind of thought I could do that when I got older, but this year at SLU i realized that "time" is a crucial gift that I have been given and I have to make every moment count or I'm going to miss it.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRAYERS AND ENCOURAGEMENT, AND FOR ALL THE TIME YOU HAVE SPENT. GOD BLESS!
In His Service,
Lora C.
Richmond Hill, GA