This year’s seventh annual Future Black Leaders Summit was hosted on February 7th, 2025. The main theme of this year’s summit was Embrace. Sixteen predominantly white high schools, including Mt. Vernon, came together and sent their respective Black Student Unions/ Future Black Leaders clubs to Butler University.
The day started with all of the schools traveling to Butler. Upon checking in, everyone received a sling bag which had a lanyard, a name tag, a snack and a t-shirt. Each school then migrated towards the auditorium, where they took a picture on the stage and then sat in their assigned seats. Music was playing the whole time, until two Fishers High School students, Gianna Fowler and Jayden Rucker, walked onto the stage and talked about the summit. They then introduced the organizer of the summit, Dr. Khalilah Marbury. Anthony Murdock II came to the event as a guest speaker too.
After the guest speaker spoke, all of the schools did a roll call. They chanted their BSU’s made-up chant and then the rest of the audience clapped. After that, everyone was split up into randomized groups based on the number on their name card. Everyone went to three different stations, including lunch.
At the end of the day, there was a dance battle with two different schools vs. another two schools.
Iyana Robbinson, a BSU member at Mt. Vernon High School, stated “It was very fun, and I enjoyed getting to know some new people and learning about how similar their lives are to mine as black individuals.” She also stated it “was a bit awkward at first because everyone around seemed older. I felt welcome after a while, and everyone was really nice.”
Events like the Black Leadership Summit are very necessary for students of all schools. They allow people to meet other people who are going through the same situations as them, and make them feel less alone.
The Black Leadership Summit was an overall success for everyone, and the Mt. Vernon BSU is very excited for the one next year.