LN Student Chosen for Elite Leadership Program, Plans to Bring Ideas Festival to Lawrence
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Geist resident and Lawrence North Junior David Langdon is the first student from Indiana to be selected for an elite leadership program that brings world leaders together with students, educators and other thinkers each year in Aspen, Colo.
Langdon is one of just 12 students nationwide to be chosen as a Bezos Scholar. Founded in 2005, the Bezos Scholars program brings together 12 high school juniors to meet with each other and attend seminars and informal meetings with the international leaders, acclaimed thinkers and creative artists who participate in the annual Aspen Ideas Festival. Past participants have met with such leaders as Colin Powell, Bill Clinton, Cokie Roberts and Jane Goodall.
The mission of this competitive program is to “help cultivate the next generation of ambassadors, diplomats, educators, Nobel Laureates, poets and scientists.”
“I am really looking forward to meeting with some of the brightest and most distinguished minds from around the world and recognize that this is a great opportunity for both myself and my school,” said Langdon, who will be in Aspen from June 29th through July 4th.
After returning, Langdon will have the opportunity to bring a piece of the festival back home by apply for a grant from the Bezos Scholars program to be used to host his own Ideas Festival here in Lawrence.
“Every student and educator scholar who attends the Aspen Ideas Festival through the Bezos Scholars program is encouraged to apply for a grant to fund their own seminars, speakers, and other events on a self-chosen topic,” Langdon explains. “Essentially, it is like bringing a piece of the festivities back home for everyone to enjoy.”
Congratulations to David Langdon, and we can’t wait to see what he thinks up for Lawrence’s first Ideas Festival!
