SMU will host the John Ben Shepperd leadership forum for high-school students on Saturday, Feb. 17.

Leadership Education Activities and Development (LEAD) is sponsoring the event, which aims to give high schoolers the skills they need to become leaders in their communities.

The students will also plan a service project with the help of SMU student facilitators. The projects will be part of National & Global Youth Service Day Service Project on April 20-22.

According to 2006 facilitator Dawn Lassiter, “The most memorable experience was watching the high-school students in their respective groups collaborating on a community service project.”

“When they realized that they had the power to make such an impact, it helped remind me that I, too, could continue to make a difference,” she said.

The conference was named after former Texas State Attorney General John Ben Shepperd, who served his term in the 1950s.

Students who are interested in being facilitators should visit www.smu.edu/lead/jbs.asp to download a form. Applicants are required to attend one of two training days (next Monday or Tuesday) and to be at the conference from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Applications are due at 5 p.m. today in the LCI Office on the third floor of Hughes-Trigg.