Even as a high school junior, Cayden Bristow is a confident public speaker. He’s appeared on stage in multiple Woodland Hills Performing Arts Department productions, performs every fall Friday night with the Woodland Hills Marching Band, and has led discussion sessions as a leader at the annual Woodland Hills Student Summit.
But in late July, the normally affable and charismatic Bristow found himself fighting a rare case of nerves in a strange city mingling with a bunch of adults he didn’t know. Bristow, senior Emmalee Russini, and peers from Pittsburgh Public Schools had been invited to participate in the Youth Conference at the 50th Annual National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) training conference in Dallas.
“The first day, I was nervous to talk to people. The second day, they put us into groups of people to start doing different activities and things. I started opening myself up more,” Bristow said. “It was great to see all of these people from different backgrounds being together here at once.”
NOBLE brings law enforcement and community leaders together in a mission to promote excellence, equity, and justice in communities throughout the nation. As part of its annual conference, it also invites high school students from around the country to take part in their own discussions. Bristow, Russini, and the rest of the students exchanged perspectives with other students, developed their leadership skills, connected with potential mentors, and more during the multi-day conference.
Both students recently served as leaders for the seventh annual Woodland Hills Student Summit, which was founded by English teacher Ms. Erin Wall, and which has received generous support from the HEAR Foundation. The foundation invited Bristow and Russini to participate in the NOBLE Conference and generously covered their expenses. It opened new doors for each of them, as they were encouraged to network and introduce themselves to as many people as possible.
Fascinated by criminal justice since she was ten, Russini valued the chance to connect with a handful of mentors, including multiple retired members of the FBI who counseled her on majoring in forensic psychology and life in the agency. Another detailed her path into law enforcement, while Emmalee explained the purpose of the Woodland Hills Student Summit. At one of the social gatherings as part of the conference, Russini was struck by U.S. Representative Jasmine Crockett’s path to the nation’s capital.
“It's just inspirational to see how she started off as the quiet, smart kid and she’s a congresswoman,” Russini said. “That’s such a big leap and it gives me faith that I could possibly do that one thing.”
The two Woodland Hills students were like sponges, trying to soak up as much information and advice as they could. It didn’t matter if it was something they could use as leaders of the Student Summit, as members of their other clubs and organizations, or in their personal lives. Every idea and interaction was valuable.
“I remember our last day, we did something they called “Straight Talk, No Chaser,” Bristow said. “They divided the boys and girls into separate rooms and it was just about topics the boys wanted to touch on. It could be anything, and some really great conversations were happening in there. It was just amazing.”
“I definitely bonded with some of the kids and how they said, “I don't think I could do this,” Russini recalled. “I was just like, ‘Look where you are now. You're learning about different law enforcement members. You're learning about youth leadership.' I even told them, ‘I'm proud of you for even being here. Even though you may not have faith in yourself I have faith in you.”
The duo participated in discussion groups and gave presentations on a range of topics. Russini reflected on the lessons and words of the Rev. Jesse Jackson – “My gift is being the person that I am,” she said – while Bristow recalled sharing an idea for a community center that is purposefully designed to reduce barriers of fear about other cultures and eliminate subconscious self-segregation.
“People flood into the groups that they're comfortable with,” Bristow said. “Black people tend to stick with black people. White people tend to stick with white people. Hispanic people tend to tend to stick with Hispanic people. I even noticed that at the conference.”
Bristow, Russini, and the other students were also challenged to pitch product ideas to a security vendor. In response, they developed an idea for a fleet of undercover law enforcement vehicles outfitted with cameras capable of using facial recognition to assist police in identifying someone with an outstanding warrant. Russini said that the group won a trip to Austin, Texas as a result of their presentation.
Later this year, Bristow and Russini will once again be leaders for the eighth annual Woodland Hills Student Summit. Each of them now has ideas and lessons they hope they can share with their fellow student leaders and with the hundreds of participants.
“I have a tendency to not voice my opinion, not to share my perspective on situations,” Russini said. “I want to take that back to the Summit, especially if I can share it to the mental health group or my criminal justice group, and just say, ‘Hey, I participated in this. It’s OK to speak up.”
Nerves now firmly in check, Bristow hopes he can return to the NOBLE Youth Conference next year.
“I hope to go back,” Bristow said. “I really hope to be the youth ambassador next year and really continue the program because I enjoyed it so much. That was such a great opportunity. I'm thankful for all the people I met there. And I'm very thankful to the HEAR Foundation for letting me be able to go with them.”