Latino Youth Leadership Conference

One major success of Consejo’s Youth Services Program is the Annual Latino Youth Leadership Conference held at Seattle Center. This conference completely organized and implemented by Latino youth with guidance from adult mentors. Historically, this conference includes a diversity of workshops by Latino leaders, artists and role models. Typically, Latino lawyers provide workshops that clarify the impact substance abuse and involvement with criminal justice has on immigration status. (In 2005, the attorney who presented this workshop at our conference was a graduate of Consejo’s Youth Services Program. He finished high-school, enrolled in and graduated from the University of Washington Law School and is a practicing attorney in Seattle.) Organizing for the conference is broken out into bi-weekly 2-hour sessions where youth and adult mentors meet to develop the conference and simultaneously develop leadership skills. Consejo’s Annual Latino Youth Leadership Conference is the only conference of its kind in Washington State.