Five youth sit around a table with colourful craft and brainstorming supplies near by.

UpLift Youth Summit 2023

CCRCE Youth Summit

The Chignecto Central Regional Centre for Education (CCRCE) Youth Summit brought together 54 students and 16 staff champions who were engaged in UpLift projects from 14 schools across the region. Goals of the Summit were to: 

  • Provide an opportunity for students in CCRCE to be recognized and celebrated by their peers and others as changemakers in creating healthy school communities, 
  • Inspire and motivate student delegates to continue to be changemakers and build on their experiences with UpLift,
  • Inspire and energize adult delegates to promote the benefits of student engagement in HPS, and 
  • Facilitate connections between student and adult delegates and build shared understanding of their work as part of a bigger movement. 

Event evaluation and reflections

Participants shared stories about their HPS work and engaged in playful group activities. Student attendees were engaged in a feedback discussion during the Summit and most students indicated that they feel more connected to other students, excited to share what they’ve learned with other students, and that they heard ways students are making schools healthier by participating in the Summit. 

Staff perspectives on student engagement and leadership in creating healthy schools were explored through the following collective Q&A:  

Staff champions indicated that when students were engaged as leaders, they rose to the occasion—including shy students who had their voices heard through the UpLift student engagement process. Students gained skills in negotiation, collaboration, compromise, and confidence.  

The YEC approach was welcoming and inclusive and it worked to have students active and outdoors. Staff noted that YEC’s thought “outside of the box”, community was involved, and connections between staff champions in various schools facilitated collaboration. Building this work into the school curriculum using a persuasive essay also worked well.   

Challenges named by staff champions include students learning that things take time and they don’t always get what they want, a lack of equipment in some cases (e.g., for smoothie making), and finding time to follow-up and complete the work amid staffing issues such as competing priorities and staffing shortages.  

Procurement challenges were noted, including mixed messages from various people and a challenging blender purchasing process.  

Supports identified by staff champions to facilitate future youth engaged HPS work include having examples from other schools (sharing knowledge and successes), more staff and time to engage with the work, support for maintenance of projects, buy-in from the school principal, involvement of YEC’s (including support with funding) and Child and Youth Care Practitioners, and connection to funding.  

Staff champions noted that YEC’s and HPS Leads have provided a foundation for youth engaged HPS work. They indicated that well-being should be a priority and that capacity to support youth engaged HPS should be built into positions to help ensure sustainability of the work and associated outcomes. Staff champions would like opportunities for networking, noting they need time allotted for this and that it could take shape as a community of practice. Staff champions believe that students are ready to be leaders, as evidenced by their leadership in the HPS UpLift Student Action Grant projects, and it is important that decision makers in school and health systems invest in students and this approach (i.e., a youth engaged HPS approach).