Hazelwood West student Michael LaCoste has a booming voice, a big laugh and big dreams to match. He attended the National Young Leaders Conference (NYLC) in Washington DC last month. NYLC is a unique leadership development program for high school students who demonstrate leadership potential and scholastic merit.
“It was a great experience,” he said. “Students from across the nation attended. It was like a week of politics. One day, we spent the day on Capitol Hill. I met Missouri Senator Jim Talent. We got to sit on the actual floor of the House. It was amazing.”
Michael was one of 400 students from around the U.S. who came to Washington for the conference.
“The National Young Leaders Conference prepares students like Michael LaCoste to serve our country well, whether that means as elected officials in our nation’s capital or as intelligent, creative and responsible members of the workforce,” said Mike Lasday, executive director of the Congressional Youth Leadership Council.
“Through a series of simulations, we place these young leaders in the proverbial driver’s sea on a variety of issues facing our country today.”
One of those simulations focused on U.S. foreign policy.
“We talked about Iran’s nuclear intention and what should the U.S. do about them, and we talked about North Korea and what we would do if we were president,” Michael said.
He also had the opportunity to meet prominent media representatives from the Washington Post, Newsweek, and USA Today at the National Press Club.
He said his favorite moment that week occurred on Capitol Hill as he sat in on that session of the House of Representatives.
Michael plans on majoring in either business or political science in college and he has his sights set on attending the University of Missouri at Columbia.
