Students from one St. Louis High School are joining students from the Metro East this weekend to learn about leadership skills and community service. The Metro East Leadership Weekend Saturday and Sunday will bring together around 45 young black men in 8th thru 12th grades from 8 Metro East Schools, and this year students from Clayton High School will be joining them at SIU-Carbondale’s Paul Simon Public Policy Institute for a program designed to motivate them to both contribute to their communities and make good life decisions.  There will be a number of activities, including a presentation by Jaylen Smith, who this year at the age of 18 became mayor of Earle, Arkansas. This is the first Leadership Weekend since 2019, when it paused during the pandemic. This weekend’s theme is Young Men, Be Extraordinary, Be Tomorrow’s Leaders, Begin Today, Starting Now. Steve Potter, KTRS News