Empowering the Next Generation: Flight Crew Highlights Youth Perspectives at National Summit

When three members (Amanda Okwara, Michelle Marfo and Avery Lee) of STEM Next’s Flight Crew took the stage in Washington, D.C. this week in front of a national audience of education leaders, they embodied their core message: the future of youth development must start with youth.

Hosted by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM), the Future of Youth Development: Vision to Action Summit brought together leaders across research, philanthropy, and policy to explore how to move from evidence to action in supporting youth development. 

During the opening session, moderator Emilie Smith from Michigan State University reminded the audience, “We’re starting this panel with the voices of youth. We do so much conversation around them, and to me it is so wise for this day to be elevating their voices.”

Avery Lee, a Flight Crew member from Delaware, found his passion in robotics. Through his team’s competitions and mentorship, he not only learned technical skills but also developed leadership and communication skills. “These programs teach you how to talk to people, how to collaborate, how to be human,” he said.