Weber State University’s 23rd annual Multicultural Youth Conference will draw hundreds of underrepresented students, from grades nine to 12, who want a head start on higher education to the Shepherd Union Building, Dec. 19 from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Over 660 students from Davis, Weber and Ogden school districts are registered for the daylong event. Workshops will focus on skills needed for college success, including financial literacy and planning, completing scholarship applications, student leadership in college, cultural diversity and community involvement.

“First-generation, low-income or ethnic minority students can face unique barriers when it comes to education, often lacking knowledge about admissions, enrollment, FAFSA, scholarship options and other ways to pay for college,” said Marissa Smith, College Access & First-Year Transition specialist. “Young people need opportunities like this to develop skills and competences to not only help them access higher education, but also to help them find their place in the world beyond high school.”

This year’s participants will be treated to a special preview of "Shared Ground," a performance by Moving Company, a WSU dance group. Motivational speakers will conclude the conference, sending students off with a renewed sense of their dream and how Weber State can help them achieve it.

In collaboration with many departments and academic programs across campus, Weber State’s Office of Access & Diversity hosts the annual event to empower students to be successful in college. Youth in attendance will have the chance to interact and ask questions of WSU faculty, staff and students.

“This conference strives to build connections between area high school students and the WSU campus community as a whole,” Smith said. “Many students come from cultures or socioeconomic backgrounds where they don't believe they can pursue a college education or earn a degree. We not only tell them they can, but also connect them with WSU staff, faculty and college students who have been through similar experiences, reminding them that it is possible.”

Interspersed throughout the day, university, high school and community volunteers will lead break-out sessions focused on cultural and diversity awareness.

More than 15 WSU departments and colleges will participate in a resource fair that the students get a chance to visit. The staff and faculty from the many different disciplines will present workshops relevant to students’ interests and career ideas.