Marymount Students Plan Girls Leadership Day

If you could travel back in time to give your middle school self some good advice, what would it be?

Five young women from Marymount High School planned a leadership conference for middle school girls in Los Angeles called "A Better Self For A Better World." Participants who attended the conference listened to student speakers and completed service projects. It was held earlier this month.

The committee responsible from the event included Madeline Whitesell, an incoming senior from Pacific Palisades; Paula Mendoza, an incoming sophomore from West Silverlake; Jesslyn Whittell, and incoming senior from Rancho Park; Kaleigh Homstad, an incoming junior from Culver City; and Amy Monzon, an incoming junior from downtown Los Angeles.

They sat down with Westwood-Century City Patch editor Sara Fay before the conference to talk about their plans for the event.

Patch: Why did you choose to customize the conference for middle school girls?

Jesslyn Whittell: A lot of us understand, coming from different middle schools, that's a time when girls are changing a lot and there tends to be a lot of drama and issues, so we decided to focus on middle school because that's an area where we can actually give advice.

Patch: What's it like to show up at Marymount on the first day of high school, and maybe know only a couple of people from middle school?

Amy Monzon: I know for me, I came all new. I didn't know anyone and I was scared, but everyone is just approachable and so happy to meet everyone. The campus is beautiful and I fell in love with the school. 

Paula Mendoza: You feel a sense of community. I'm a freshman, so this is all fresh for me. I was so happy to be in a community that respects each other. I felt like I was already part of a family.

Madeline Whitesell: It's a big change, I think, when you come from a middle school, but especially a co-ed school where there's more drama going on. There's a lot more community here, maybe just maturity-wise or being in this environment. But I think that's really cool for middle school girls to come here to get a taste of that, that we support each other and that we do have a community here.

Kaleigh Homstad: It's a personal sisterhood.

Patch: So obviously middle school can be pretty tough for most people, but what's the handful of lessons that you want to impart on these younger girls?

Kaleigh Homstad: We have a couple topics. Girls supporting girls, leadership, confidence, friendship...

Patch: Well, there are plenty of things I wish I knew about myself in middle school. What do you wish you knew then? 

Amy Monzon: I know it was really hard for me to see who I really was, so what I would say is, embrace yourself. be who you want to be, don't change yourself. You can do it all—if you like sports, if you like fashion, if you like being a girly girl, do it. Be yourself and your friends will end up finding you.

Madeline Whitesell: I was really shy in middle school. ...What I'm trying to tell girls is, they shouldn't be afraid to put themselves out there, and ... try and fail. That's the way they learn from their mistakes and become leaders.

Kaleigh Homstad: For me it's not getting caught up in all the gossip and the cattiness, and just learning to let that go.

Jesslyn Whittel: I think that girls should know that they're stronger than they think they are and they can overcome any obstacles in their way and become real people, people capable of making a difference.

Stay on top of local news by subscribing to our free daily email newsletter and follow Westwood-Century City Patch on Facebook and Twitter.