Spring Lake High School Students Empowered at MASSP Women’s Summit  

Spring Lake High School proudly sent nine students and two staff members to this year’s Women’s Summit, hosted by the Michigan Association of Secondary School Principals (MASSP). The conference brought together young women leaders from across the state to celebrate and explore themes of empowerment, leadership, and change.

Senior Reese Cooper shared her reflections on the experience, saying, “When I received my acceptance letter for the Women's Summit, I had absolutely no idea what to expect. A handful of friends who had previously attended urged me to go, telling me how amazing and impactful it truly was. They were absolutely right. This conference was only a day and a half, but the amount of empowerment and inspiration I felt after the event’s closing was much bigger than the short amount of time I spent there.”

Reese emphasized the sense of unity among the attendees, stating, “As I looked around the giant room where the majority of the event was hosted, I saw a multitude of different faces and personalities, from years younger to years older than me. Despite our differences, the defining characteristic between us was our passion for female leadership and empowerment.”

For freshman McKenzie Pope, the highlight of the summit was the inspiring speakers. “For me personally, the most impactful part of the Women's Summit were the speakers. I felt very inspired by their words and definitely took them back with me to Spring Lake. They were very educated, smart, and inspirational with the way they spoke,” McKenzie explained. “I really enjoyed going and hearing each of them speak both days!”

Jessica Beebe, a teacher adviser who attended with the students, expressed her gratitude for the experience. “This is the third year of the summit and my second year taking students. The most impactful part for me was watching our young women from Spring Lake be vulnerable, motivated, excited, inspired, empowered, and so many other emotions during the short day and a half that we were there,” she said. “Sometimes the best thing we can hear in this world is that what we are feeling or experiencing is being felt by others. This summit gave me and the young ladies a chance to hear that from a variety of women.”

Jessica also extended her gratitude to the Spring Lake Public Schools Foundation for sponsoring the attendance of nine students and two adults. “I hope I can take even more students next year!” she added.

The Women’s Summit proved to be a transformative experience for all who attended, fostering connections, inspiring new ideas, and reinforcing the value of female leadership in 2024 and beyond. Spring Lake High School is proud to support such initiatives that encourage and empower the next generation of leaders.