At first, belonging asks something of the people around you:
“Will you make a place for me?”
You need to know that you are welcome. That people know you, support you, and believe you are capable of great things.
But as you grow, belonging begins to ask something of you:
What kind of place will you help create for someone else?
At Crossroads, that is part of what belonging is meant to grow into. You first learn that you have a place here. Then you learn that you help shape this place for others.
YOU CAN LEARN LEADERSHIP FROM THE OTHER SIDE.
Recently, several young men from Crossroads Prep took part in a Brothers in Technology event at The DISTRICT.
They worked through hands-on activities, learned from people with knowledge to share, and made new connections with students and adults.
But another lesson was happening.
The adults did more than share what they knew about technology.
They gave their time. They shared what they had learned. They created connections and opportunities for young people coming behind them.
The students were experiencing leadership from the other side.
Sometimes, before you understand what it means to open a door for someone else, you need to experience someone opening one for you.
That is the kind of experience Crossroads wants students to have — not only seeing what may be possible for them, but seeing what people can make possible for one another.
BELONGING IS NOT ONLY SOMETHING YOU RECEIVE.
Your choices help shape whether other people belong, too.
You can include someone. Share something you know. Notice when someone needs help. Take care of something everyone shares.
These choices may look small.
But they teach you that what you do affects the people around you.
That is where belonging becomes responsibility.
And responsibility is where leadership can begin.
LEADERSHIP DOESN’T REQUIRE YOU TO BE IN CHARGE.
You do not need a title to make something better for someone else.
You do not need authority to help solve a problem.
You do not need to be the oldest person in the room to make the room better because you are there.
Leadership can start long before anyone calls you a leader.
At Crossroads, that matters because you are never just preparing for what comes next on your own. You are learning how you can contribute to what comes next for others, too.
SOMEDAY, YOU GET TO HOLD THE DOOR.
Someone teaches you. Someone answers your question. Someone introduces you to a person you should know.
Someone helps you imagine yourself in a room you have never entered before.
Then, one day, the roles begin to change.
The knowledge you gain becomes knowledge you can share.
The connection someone makes for you becomes a connection you can make for someone else.
The door someone opens for you becomes a door you can hold open.
You first experience belonging when someone helps create a place for you.
Leadership begins when you realize you can help create that place for somebody else.
That is how you become Built for What’s Next.
P.S. Built for What’s Next isn’t a newsletter about school events. It’s about the beliefs behind great schools–and how those beliefs shape young lives. Each week, we pull back the curtain on the choices, relationships, and everyday moments that help students grow in confidence, character, and purpose. If you’d like to learn more about the Crossroads approach and the community we’re building together, visit CrossroadsSchoolsKC.org.
