Year One: Six Young Leaders, Six Different Paths

Year one of LeapYear is complete. Six young leaders have finished the program with more clarity, confidence, competence, character, and agency—and stepped into next chapters that fit each of them.

That sentence is simple. The year behind it was not.

Over nine months, our team built curriculum, tested new ideas, developed young leaders, and learned from them at the same time. I am incredibly proud of what we built together. This founding year would not have been possible without Haley Robison Dake, Bill Walker, Tami Peterson, and Mackenzie Korsi Thomas. I am deeply grateful for their work and for every person who made an introduction, joined us along the way, or offered an encouraging word.

Most of all, thank you to Sarah, Zach, Claire, Holden, Sawyer, and Dominic. You took a leap of faith on a brand-new program. You brought creativity and courage to the year, trusted us enough to help shape it, and paved the way for the students who will follow.

The result that matters most

By the most important measure, year one was an encouraging success: students’ lives changed. The clearest evidence is in their own words.

Growing in agency

“I used to be really nervous and unsure and scared to do anything that would create any change. And today I’m someone who’s confident in myself. I take action on things, and I embrace change and new opportunities.”

Holden

Becoming community builders

“I think another aspect has been… affirming each other and trying to help people see their strengths that they might not personally recognize… I think that’s been really fun not only to receive, but also to learn how to tell others what you appreciate about them.”

Zach

“I hosted a capstone dinner where I hosted eleven women that I really look up to and respect. I spent a lot of time planning it. I wrote each of them a letter. I got to decorate the table, make a meal… I am definitely looking to have more experiences and host more things like that in the future.”

“I like learning and listening to people who are different than me more than I did.”

Claire

Deepening clarity and conviction

“I’ve grown in clarity around, not only on what I believe… but the ability to present what I believe… and my ability to make a decision is much more firm than what it was when I started. I can tangibly see a difference.”

Dominic

“He’s really grown a ton spiritually and mainly kind of just asking really good questions, sorting through those for himself, owning his faith personally and acting on it. Letting that influence the way that he does life.”

Will Walker, parent

What shaped the year

These changes did not come from a single class or breakthrough moment. They grew from a few convictions that shaped the entire program:

• Who you are becoming is more important than what you achieve.
• Curiosity is the best fuel for learning.
• Clarity comes through action.
• Leadership is more caught than taught.
• Agency is more powerful than credentials.

Those convictions took practical form. Students built projects, hosted dinners, met leaders, tested possible careers, read deeply, traveled, worked, served their community, and reflected on what they were learning. They were surrounded by people worth looking up to, given room to ask hard questions, and expected to take meaningful risks.

At the center of the year were three questions:

1. What story am I living in?
2. What is my story?
3. What do I do about it?

We believe young people need to encounter the Christian story, wrestle honestly with its implications for their lives, form their own convictions, and decide how those convictions will shape their actions.

Six students, different paths

One of the most encouraging outcomes is how different the students’ paths became.

• One student is heading directly into the music industry with a newly built network.
• Another is headed to his first-choice college with an 80% scholarship after previously being denied admission.
• A third deferred Stanford for LeapYear and will now arrive with a deeper sense of identity and purpose.

Those are only three examples, but they show something important: the same method and community did not produce a uniform result. They helped each student discover a next step that fit.

LeapYear is about forming young leaders who know the story they are living in, understand their role within it, and are equipped to take meaningful action—no matter where they head next.

Looking toward year two

As we prepare for year two, we are doubling down on refining the program in Austin while beginning to build the playbook we can eventually use in other cities. We have also started a scholarship fund to make LeapYear accessible to more families.

Learn about current LeapYear scholarships and financial aid →

Thank you again for believing in this work and helping make the first year of LeapYear possible. We are just getting started.