How the Summer Symposium Works

​Background and Mission

Founded by several area teachers in 2008, the goal of the Summer Symposium, Buffalo is to provide the background knowledge, inspiration, and skills to help young people live a contributory life.  It is based upon the premise that education counterbalances prejudice, antisemitism, racism, and indifference. With that as its North Star, the Symposium offers students the opportunity to learn from world class human rights experts, and upstanders, with its nationally-recognized teaching staff and trained interns providing practical methods to help empower its participants to be changemakers in their communities, nation, and world. To see a summary of previous Symposiums, click here.
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​How the Symposium is structured

The Symposium is carefully organized to meet the developmental needs of high school students.  Its morning session is designed to provide a deep dive into contemporary social, political, and economic problems by sharing the perspective of a national or world-wide experts, with the lunchtime sessions connecting the participants with  local and regional changemakers.  Once the students have this important content, they are put in afternoon breakout sessions led by the Symposium's college interns that are designed to help the students create a program, event, or fundraiser on one of the following themes that the participant chooses on their application. Topics include environmental issues, racial equality, LGTBQ+ equality, preventing school violence, helping refugees, preventing genocide, political organizing, public health issues, disability rights, and social work/counseling.​
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Student with Free Speech activist Mary Beth Tinker
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Students hear from refugee activist, Jordan Hattar
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Summer Symposium interns with Allida Black

​THEIR GREAT PROGRAM IS COMPLEMENTED BY SESSIONS INCLUDING YOGA, MEDITATION, PAINTING AND SLAM POETRY. HOW WONDERFUL!

- INtern Julia, 2019

Who can attend and how can I register

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The Academy's Summer Symposium is open to an exiting 8th Grader through graduating high school senior from any school in Western New York.  For most years, roughly 75-90 students attend. Any interested participant is asked to complete a short registration form, with a fee or scholarships available and no student ever turned away!
 
Registration open in April each year.