Little Leaders, a student-led mentorship program run by the FHS student council, bridges the gap between middle and high school by introducing younger students to the fundamentals of leadership. Each week, high school student leaders work with the seventh and eighth-grade student council to build confidence, explore values, and learn how to collaborate effectively.

Cameron Custance, Vice President of Student Council and Chair Head of the Little Leaders committee, helps plan and guide each session.

“Every week before the actual Little Leaders meeting, my committee and I meet up during SMART and we come up with a plan, then we make slides for the meeting the next day,” said Custance.

Each meeting includes a short lesson on leadership followed by hands-on activities. These activities blend learning with entertainment, keep students engaged, and help the lessons stick in their minds

“We want to prepare them for high school student council,” said Custance. “So we teach leadership values in a fun and entertaining way that will keep them satisfied and entertained the whole time.”

The format has struck a chord with middle schoolers. Seventh grader Mackenzie said the goal-setting activities stood out the most to her throughout the year.

“I liked the goal lessons… they helped me better realize what I want,” Mackenzie said. “I’ve learned different types of values that I may not have known in the past.”

Though the high school students handle most of the planning, the middle schoolers also engage in their own discussions and projects. Still, seventh grader Elanor said she’d love more time directly interacting with the high schoolers.

“We do more things on our own,” Elanor said. “I’d like to do more things with the actual high schoolers.”

For the high schoolers, preparing for the sessions often involves juggling ideas and coordinating responsibilities on the fly.

“We don’t have a super structured plan,” Custance said. “We just brainstorm and compile our ideas together, then transfer them to the slides.”

The casual structure doesn’t mean the team doesn’t face challenges. Attendance is one of the biggest.

“It’s hard having SMART two to three times a week, and people don’t have that open a lot of times,” Custance said. 

Despite the obstacles, the results have been meaningful for both sides. Custance recalled a moment that affirmed the impact her committee was making.

“After one meeting, one of the advisors came to me and said that this year was one of the best years they’ve had of Little Leaders so far,” Custance said. “It just made me feel really proud.”

Middle school advisors Ms. Fugate and Ms. DeCumen play a supervisory role in the program, making sure everything runs smoothly while allowing the high schoolers to take the lead.

“We just help facilitate occasionally,” said Ms. Fugate. “The high schoolers pretty much handle all of the planning and the activities.”

She believes the success of the program lies in the peer-to-peer connection.

“The middle schoolers appreciate when they can hear about what’s happening at the high school and interact with the older kids,” Fugate said. “It makes applying for student council less intimidating because they already kind of know who StuCo is and what they do.”

The lessons go beyond surface-level leadership. Ms. DeCumen emphasized the importance of teaching middle schoolers how to lead among peers, not just how to stand out.

“It’s not always the loudest person in the room who leads,” DeCumen said. “It’s the ones who are dependable, who can run a group and keep it moving. The ones who are trustworthy and follow through.”

Custance hopes that the younger students take away a deeper understanding of leadership—and a boost in confidence.

“You don’t have to be old or super mature to be a leader,” she said. “You just have to be a positive influence.”

Little Leaders may start with goal-setting worksheets and small group games, but its impact reaches much farther. As students prepare to take on high school and beyond, the program is giving them something invaluable: the belief that they already have what it takes to lead.