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Student Diversity Leadership Conference

Every year, the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) provides a peerless opportunity to high school students, the Student Diversity Leadership Conference (SDLC).

Given the intricate programming and keenly coordinated collaborative, NAIS only allows for 1,600 students. For years now, Sierra Canyon has been sending six students to this conference, the maximum amount allowed. 
 
Students were invited to create a video application for selection, an opportunity that afforded them the creative means of expressing their desires for attending the program. The Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Roya Fahmy, provided the stewardship for the entire process. 
 
This year, Sierra Canyon proudly selected the following students to represent the School and benefit from the program: Angelina Chiang ‘22, Carter Lee ‘23, Frankie Moseley ‘22, Iayan Ansari ‘23, Juntong Wang ‘23, and Willow Stromer ‘25. Frankie had attended the year prior, and returning students are granted the status of peer facilitator, a role that endows students with more responsibility. 
 
At its core, SDLC designs small-group gatherings to develop communication skills, network with students from across the country and internationally, and build empathy. Past attendees have included valedictorians and salutatorians who have unanimously voiced their enthusiasm for the impact of SDLC. “Transformative” is a word perennially shared about the experience, and students often ask for more opportunities akin to what they had experienced. 
 
Those who have returned from the conference often take advantage of the infrastructure of Sierra Canyon’s Upper School clubs so that they may carry on the work and strive for leadership. One of the founding members of the student-created and driven club, SC Voices for Change, drew plenty of motivation from what he had experienced at the conference.
 
We are so proud of the many opportunities available for Sierra Canyon students in existing organizations and those they may imagine and create in the future. The more students become involved and active, the stronger they make our community.
Lower School: 11052 Independence Avenue
Middle and Upper School: 20801 Rinaldi Street
Chatsworth, CA 91311  | 818.882.8121
Sierra Canyon School is a private, independent, non-sectarian, co-educational, college preparatory school for students in grades Pre-Kindergarten through 12 located in Chatsworth, California. The highly cosmopolitan campus community is reflective of the Greater Los Angeles area and the world at large. Students are empowered to realize their greatest creative, ethical, intellectual and physical promise through small class sizes, a diverse student-teacher culture and a family-like environment.