1Berkshire Youth Leadership Program

08/19/2026

Yesterday was the Class of 2027's first official session of the year where they were able to re-engage with one another, continue to build upon their connection from the retreat, and identify a direction for their year-long collective impact project. We look forward to seeing them work together and see what they accomplish this year!

A big thank you to MCLA hosting us for this incredibly important session and giving the students a tour of the campus!

07/02/2026

Congratulations to Class of 2025 alumna Maddy Kotek on winning the Bob Nason Community Service Award for her commitment to serving others! Way to go, Maddy!

"Each recipient has demonstrated a commitment to excellence in a different way, and together they represent the talent, character, and promise of the next generation," said Chamber Board President and Scholarship Committee member Erik Williams.

06/18/2026

This past weekend, the Youth Leadership Program Class of 2027 met for the first time! Throughout two and a half days (and two nights) at Chimney Corners Camp in Becket, our class made new friends, learned about their natural leadership abilities, worked together to accomplish some teambuilding challenges, and had a ton of fun! Special thanks to our friends at Becket-Chimney Corners YMCA for hosting us, our facilitator Tom from Swift Kick, our steering committee of volunteer professionals, and our program sponsors BeaconBank, Berkshire Health Systems, and Greylock Federal Credit Union for making this program happen!

Stay tuned to see what the Class of 2027 gets up to during their year together!

05/27/2026

CALLING ALL YLP/YOULEAD ALUMNI!

Are you interested in helping us to develop a network of program alumni? We're asking all YouLead/YLP alumni to respond to the Alumni Needs Assessment to help us determine what would be most valuable to a YLP alumni network. Complete the assessment to be eligible for selection to a limited-opportunity alumni retreat happening later this summer!

05/20/2026

Congratulations to YLP Class of 2026 alumnus Gloria Williams, who was presented with the Samya Rose Stumo Youth Leadership Award at yesterday's Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires awards breakfast! Program Director Kevin Pink was thrilled to be in attendance to celebrate. Gloria, we can't wait to see all that you accomplish as your next chapters unfold!

05/01/2026

Check out these great learning opportunities for teens!

Calling all local teens!

🎥Beginning on June 6th, the BerkShares Digital Media Ambassador Program is a great way for local youth to learn skills in social media content creation and small business marketing!📱

This free and fun program is available to all teens in the area looking to support a small business while learning new skills! See a program schedule below.

Are you or is someone you know interested in this program? Sign up today at https://berkshares.org/dmap/ 📝

Meeting schedule:
🗓️ 6/6, 6/13, 6/20, 6/27, 7/5
⏱️ Noon - 1:30 (Noon - 12:45 on 7/5)
📍 Great Barrington (specific location TBA)

04/21/2026

Congratulations to Gloria Williams (Class of 2026), the winner of this year's Samya Rose Stumo Youth Leadership award as part of this year's Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires honorees! Way to go, Gloria!

We love ending our week with joyful news-

Announcing the 2026 Berkshire Nonprofit Award Honorees:
Liliana Atanacio/Board Leadership
Sabrina Allard/ Executive Leadership
Cathy Marchetto/ Lifetime Achievement
Jennifer Golin/ RockStar
Kathryn Benson/ Unsung Hero
Lisa Alberti/ Volunteer
Gloria Williams/ Samya Rose Stumo Youth Leadership

Congrats to all and all the nominees.
And thank you to our 22 judges from across the county (nonprofits, businesses and municipal employees) who spent care and time reading through each nomination.

Get your TICKETS now to celebrate with this wonderful group on May 19th from 8-10:30am at the Country Club of Pittsfield: https://npcberkshires.org/product/nonprofit-awards-ticket/

04/17/2026

Congratulations to the Class of 2026, who celebrated their commencement last night at Greenock Country Club in Lee! In addition to learning professional skills and exploring career opportunities here , this year's class focused their project on food insecurity, and together collected over 2,800 food items for Berkshire food pantries at a time where the need is greater than normal.

Thank you to our lead sponsors, BeaconBank, Camp Becket, Berkshire Health Systems, and Greylock Federal Credit Union, as well as our program supporters Berkshire Agricultural Ventures and NBT Bank! Thank you also to Greenock Country Club and our caterer, KJ Nosh Catering Company! A special thanks to the Youth Leadership Program Steering Committee, who help us plan and host our monthly sessions and lend their experience and expertise to our students all year.

Congratulations, YLP Class of 2026!

04/15/2026

Meet the Class of 2026! Each week, we will highlight a new young leader from this year’s incredible class. Make sure to check back regularly to learn more about each student as the year goes on.

What is your name: Sage Winkler

What is your hometown: Williamstown

What high school do you attend: BART Charter

What is/are your favorite subject(s) in school: History and science

What do you like to do for fun: I like playing frisbee and spending time with people I love.

What is your favorite thing to do/place to go in the Berkshires: I love going to target and taking walks.

What does the word "leadership" mean to you: Leadership means to me being an active community member and good role model.

Who is a leader that you look up to? What is it about them as a leader that inspires you: I really look up to my mom as a leader. She leads in her interests so strongly and inspires a lot of other community members.

Tell us about a time in life you took a leadership role. How did it work out: A time I was a leader was when I had a friend who was really anxious to go on stage and I helped her through it.

What do you hope to learn from the Youth Leadership Program this year: I hope to learn that there’s more in Berkshire County.

What goals do you have for your future? What do you want to achieve: I hope to inspire people through leadership.

04/08/2026

Meet the Class of 2026! Each week, we will highlight a new young leader from this year’s incredible class. Make sure to check back regularly to learn more about each student as the year goes on.

What is your name: Gloria Williams

What is your hometown: Pittsfield

What high school do you attend: Pittsfield High School

What is/are your favorite subject(s) in school: Biology, history, performance arts, and English.

What do you like to do for fun: Act, sing, travel, and do things that are adventurous.

What is your favorite thing to do/place to go in the Berkshires: Beacon Cinema or the park.

What does the word "leadership" mean to you: Leadership means being willing to sacrifice and put your needs aside for the benefit of other’s needs.

Who is a leader that you look up to? What is it about them as a leader that inspires you: A leader that I look up to is Shirley Edgerton because she just has quite a fascinating life story, and she’s an amazing influence on young girls of color and people in the Berkshires.

Tell us about a time in life you took a leadership role. How did it work out: A time in my life where I took a leadership role was when I accepted the position of being the youth chair for the NAACP in the Berkshire. It will continue to lead me to so many life changing opportunities.

What do you hope to learn from the Youth Leadership Program this year: Just different options and that it’s okay for my plans to change.

What goals do you have for your future? What do you want to achieve: I just want to make sure that nothing holds me back from achieving what I want to achieve.