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EHS Student Leaders Join With Global Officials, Activists for Leadership Study

The institute’s Michael Polt, a former U.S. ambassador, and Benjamin Freakley, a retired U.S. Army general, led the workshop. Members of Episcopal’s Honor and Discipline committees were joined by Next Generation Leaders, individuals selected by the McCain Institute from around the world for a year of professional development in the United States. These included an adviser to the Lithuanian president, a BBC journalist in Myanmar, and the founder of a network of elementary schools in Africa.

The group discussed the McCain Institute’s focus on character-driven leadership, which Freakley said is drawn from the life of the late Episcopal alumnus Sen. John McCain ’54. “Character-driven leadership boils down to the commitment by an individual to do the right thing, in the right way, for the right reasons.”

The EHS students also engaged in small-group discussions with their global counterparts about two controversial topics in the news: the advantage enjoyed by the wealthy in higher education admissions and the obligations of nations to care for illegal immigrants.

The McCain Institute advances character-driven leadership in the United States and around the world to promote security, economic opportunity, freedom, and human dignity. It recently signed an agreement to work over the next three years with EHS, which became its first high school partner.

“This exciting opportunity to engage with global leaders, and some of the nation's finest leadership educators, is only the beginning of the partnership between Episcopal High School and the McCain Institute,” said Jeremy Goldstein, executive director of the McCain-Ravenel Center. “Part of the vision of the McCain-Ravenel Center at EHS is to be the nexus of high-level partnerships for our community while connecting with unique teaching and learning moments in the national capital region and beyond.”

The McCain-Ravenel Center was created as part of Episcopal's 2018 Strategic Plan, which aims to deepen the School's commitment to promoting intellectual and moral courage in its graduates.
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