NSHSS Sisters Selected for Summer Programs

Natalie (left) and Ursula Dilley (right) with NSHSS staff member Veronica Squires at Scholar's Day in Washington, D.C.

NSHSS members Ursula and Natalie Dilley, of Salem, Virginia, are sisters who were both selected for widely divergent, but prestigious summer programs this year. Natalie Dilley, who will graduate Salem High School in 2009, was selected to be a participant in the 2007 Keystone Youth Policy Summit on Energy Efficiency in Keystone, Colorado. This highly-selective program is sponsored by the Keystone Center and the National Consortium for Specialized Secondary Schools of Mathematics, Science and Technology (NCSSSMST).

The Keystone Center Youth Policy Summit provides students with training on technical issues, negotiation, and problem solving while also providing a place for sharing research and collaborating with their peers. The students then participate in a simulated negotiation between "representatives" of various critical stakeholder groups with differing views on the issue of energy efficiency. Through their negotiations, the students create innovative policy recommendations that are forwarded to the President, members of Congress, government agencies, and thought leaders in the industrial and non-profit sectors. They return to their schools and share their insights and recommendation with fellow students and their communities.

Ursula Dilley, Salem High School Class of 2007, is a NSHSS National Scholar Award recipient and new Student Council member who is entering the highly-acclaimed Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD). This summer, she was a member of a select group of ninety-one from across the U.S. and abroad invited to attend the Rising Star program at the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) for five weeks. The program allowed her to get a head start on her college career by enrolling in and receiving college credit for two courses taught by SCAD faculty members.

The program concluded with a ceremony, gallery exhibition, and dessert reception for students and their guests at the historic Savannah Station. Ursula writes that the "Rising Star program was a great opportunity to experience college life and living on campus along with enhancing my time management skills that will be needed for success in college life."