Emerging Student Leader Program

Start Your Leadership Journey: Become an NASC Emerging Student Leader

Great leaders are not born—they practice—and the best practice starts early. NASC’s Emerging Student Leader program is tailored specifically for middle level students in NASC member schools who have made significant strides in developing their skills as young leaders. Participants work with their student council adviser to complete the Emerging Student Leader Skills Checklist, tracking the required number of indicators in each of the core areas defined in the program, such as speaking, leadership, and service skills. Upon successful completion and submission, students are awarded the title of NASC Emerging Student Leader, a prestigious accolade acknowledging their commitment and excellence in student leadership.

The Emerging Student Leader recognition program:

  • Provides students and advisers with a set of criteria specifically selected for middle level leaders that identifies basic knowledge, skills, and behaviors that foster leadership development in early adolescents
  • Challenges students to extend and personalize their student council experience by striving to meet the NASC criteria
  • Advances middle level leaders in their aspirations to be effective high school student leaders
  • Cultivates better leaders earlier in their academic careers, ultimately improving the culture of your student council and creating exemplary role models for other students

The program design allows advisers to work with students to track their skills over the course of the academic year, culminating in an evaluation using the criteria checklist. Students will also answer written reflection questions and submit to their advisers as a way to demonstrate growth in their leadership abilities and provide personal accounts of their experiences as they become Emerging Student Leaders.

Students can be recognized at two levels based on how many of the criteria are met:

  • Emerging Student Leader—Developmental Level
  • Emerging Student Leader

The Emerging Student Leader program evaluates skills in the following categories:

  1. Governing Documents
  2. Follower Skills
  3. Leader Skills
  4. Listener Skills
  5. Speaker Skills
  6. Writing Skills
  7. Power Skills
  8. Service Skills

FOR STUDENTS           FOR ADVISERS