CHS students attend Light Leadership Conference
By Canton Citizen
Matt Light and CHS externs Avery Piantedosi and Andrew Valkanas take a group selfie with conference participants.
On Thursday, May 26, 32 students from Canton High School traveled to Bridgewater State University to take part in the fifth annual Light Foundation Leadership Conference in New England — a day-long summit hosted by the Light Foundation and its co-founder, three-time Super Bowl champion and Patriots Hall of Famer Matt Light.
First piloted in Franklin seven years ago, this unique, youth-oriented program made its return after a two-year COVID break and was bigger than ever this year with returning participant Canton High joined by contingents from Brockton, Scituate and Taunton high schools.
The theme of the 2022 conference was “Connecting with Confidence: Putting Your Best Self Forward” and sponsors included Dunkin’ Donuts, GraVoc and the Haynes Group, Inc.
The day opened with a few words from BSU President Fred Clark and Matt Light about the post-pandemic return and the successful partnership between the university and the nonprofit. Students then heard from the keynote speaker, award-winning features reporter and NBC10 Boston news anchor Jackie Bruno, who shared personal stories and answered questions from attendees about how to handle adversity. After a short activity run by student mentors, guests then had a chance to network with each other through a variety of different media, and then they broke into smaller groups and met with three influential guest speakers: Matt Light (“The Advantages to Being R.E.A.L.), BSU’s Executive Director of Wellness Dr. Chris Frazer (“The Wellness of Good Leadership”), and TB12 Sports’ James Castrello and Kevin Richard (“TB12 Method and Application and its Connection to Physical Wellness, Mindset and Focus”). After lunch, American rapper, entrepreneur, and former professional athlete Antoine Allen spoke to the students about the importance of hard work and perseverance in his keynote address, “Keep it Going: No Days Off!”
In addition to Canton’s participation at the leadership conference, two members of the CHS Class of 2022, Avery Piantedosi and Andrew Valkanas, completed their senior externship at the Light Foundation this spring and both had significant roles at the May 26 event. To learn more about the Light Foundation, visit www.mattlight72.com.
Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=87457
Posted by Canton Citizen
on Jun 17 2022. Filed under News, Schools.
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