Youth Explore Their Possibilities at Empower U Youth Summit

About a dozen primary and high-school-aged students spent part of their weekend exploring what the future may hold for them.

The Empower U Youth Summit invited them to imagine, learn and equip themselves with the tools and skills they need to succeed in their academic, personal, and professional lives.

Those who filled the seats at the University of the Virgin Islands Community Resource and Development Center on St. John were attentive and engaged throughout the Saturday morning session. They made their way through a brainstorming exercise to share subjects they wanted to learn more about. They heard a panel discussion featuring a small-business owner, a college sports coach and an educator telling stories about their formative years.

Theirs were stories of navigating the ups and downs of life. Coach Stephanie Cooper said her pregnancy as a youth disqualified her from playing college sports — something that she loved and looked forward to. But she decided to go to college anyway and sought a school that would allow her to bring her child along; Cooper said she also redirected her love of sports from playing to coaching.

“That was something that turned my life around,” she said.