Washington County Chamber of Commerce Youth Leadership

2025-2026 Youth Leadership Graduation 💙

Such a fun morning celebrating this years Youth Leadership students! We spent the morning hearing from the students about their 6 sessions and all the things they learned and people they met over the past 6 months! Thank you to Oconee Fall Line Technical College for letting us use such a great space and to Chester Dean's Buffet & BBQ for a wonderful breakfast! We cannot wait to see all the amazing things these students will accomplish in the future!!

Local Government Breakfast and our last session before graduation!! Students got to speak with community leaders this morning about things going on in our county and how decision making and problem solving happens at the city and county levels! They then got to tour the new space for the Washington County Food Pantry and work on their problem solving skills in groups- we ended the session with getting prepared for graduation!! We can’t wait to see these students at Youth Leadership Graduation next Wednesday! Thank you to Jet Food Stores for such a delicious breakfast, Oconee RESA for letting us use their beautiful space and to all the city and county leaders who volunteered their morning to speak with these students!

February Session: Economic Bus Tour

We had such a fun morning taking these students around the county to see all things economic development related. They got to see all the business and industry that shape our community and hear from local business professionals at Thiele Kaolin Company, Washington EMC, and Washington County Recreation Department - Sandersville, GA! They loved hearing about local projects, touching kaolin products and touring the local EMC office!! Thank you to Kim David with Oconee Fall Line Technical College for helping with the tour and to everyone else who took time out of their day to speak with this awesome group of students!!

Seasion 3: We had so much fun today!!! We discussed social, dining, and business etiquette, took a dancing lesson, and recapped their community service projects from the holiday season!!
Thank you
-The Pringle Building
-Mr. Dean Wilcher, Work-based learning coordinator with Washington County High School
-Mrs. Brannen Sheppard with Modern Etiquette and The Guild of Washington County
- Mark and Kathy Neal- dance lessons

We are so thankful for all the individuals who take time out of their busy schedules to come speak and teach this awesome group of students!!

Session 2: Downtown Historic Walking Tour

We started the morning at the Washington County Commissioners meeting and then explored the Old Jail and Genealogy Research Center!! Students loved hearing about things going on in the County and learning about the history of our square. We then made our way around the square and listened to Carson Daley at City Hall talk about all the things that are happening within the City!!

We ended the day with a delicious lunch at Chester Dean's Buffet & BBQ and recapped our morning at Thiele Park!!

Youth Leadership 2025-2026 Kickoff: We had the best day getting to know this new group of students, they are so energetic and already working great together!! Thank you to Mrs. Conni Burley with Archway Partnership for doing a personality assessment with them: they learned what color matches their personality and characteristics, how others view them, and how to better navigate relationships with people who are a different color than them! We can’t wait to spend the next 5 months with them!!

Help us give a warm welcome to the 2025-2026 Youth Leadership class. These twenty-four 10th & 11th graders were selected for the program and we can't wait to work with them for the next six months.
Stay tuned for updates about their monthly sessions as they learn about our community and develop their leadership skills.

Congratulations to each student!

Youth Leadership is sponsored by The Guild of Washington County and supported by Washington County High School & Brentwood School.

2024-2025 Youth Leadership Graduation

We are so proud of these students and all they did and accomplished over the past 6 months!!! This program wouldnt be possible without countless community partners and schools who are willing to share their students with us!! We can’t wait to see all the amazing things they will do in the future!!!

Thank you
Oconee Fall Line Technical College - event space
Chester Dean's Buffet & BBQ -catering
Washington County High School FFA- centerpieces

Final 2024-2025 Session for this group of young leaders!!

We spent the morning meeting with local government officials and then went on an economic bus tour where students learned all about economic development and the major industries we have have within the county!! We ended the day recapping all of our sessions and preparing for graduation next week!!!

Thank you Oconee RESA for allowing us to use such a great space and QuikMart of Tennille for the delicious breakfast!!!

Our February session was so much fun today!!! We discussed social, dining, and business etiquette, heard from U.S. Representative Rick Allen’s office, and recapped their community service projects from the holiday season!!
Thank you
-The Pringle Building
-Mr. Dean Wilcher, Work-based learning coordinator with Washington County High School
-Mrs. Brannen Sheppard with Modern Etiquette and The Guild of Washington County
-Jennifer Hayes, District Representative with Congressman Rick Allen’s Office
-Deborah Brown, Sandersville Councilwoman and Washington County Nb & Pw

We are so thankful for all the individuals who take time out of their busy schedules to come speak to these students!!

Next up: March final session and Graduation