MARCH 9-10, 2026

WILLMAR CONFERENCE CENTER | WILLMAR, MN

A civic leadership summit convening 250 Minnesota teens for America’s 250th Birthday

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Teams of high school students representing schools or student groups will

1

Choose a challenge and study the portfolio documents about that topic.

CLIMATE
How will your team power a clean-energy future?

EDUCATION
How will your team revive school attendance?

MEDIA
How will your team leverage media to bridge civic divides?

2

Assign a role to each delegate and receive relevant career coaching.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
Vision / Strategy / Impact

Chief Operating Officer (COO)
Strategy / Systems / Execution

Chief Marketing Officer (CMO)
Messaging / Branding / Engagement

Chief Financial Officer (CFO)
Budget / Feasibility / Investment

Chief Policy Officer (CPO)
Law / Governance / Systems Change

3

Innovate a campaign, plan, innovation, or partnership to answer the challenge question.

4

Present to a panel of civic and business leaders in a shark-tank style competition (1st place team takes $5k grand prize!)

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