The Leader in Me is bringing teachers, administrators and business leaders from seven states to Vicksburg over the next couple days.

A Leader in Me Symposium is being held at the Vicksburg Convention Center for those looking to implement the program in their community and those already using the program who are looking for new ideas and direction to bring to their district.

“The next two days are really going to be more focused, not so much on the seven habits, but more so on the specifics on implementing the Leader in Me and the leadership model in their schools,” said Lonnie Moore, consultant and speaker for the Leader in Me company Franklin Covey.

About 168 people have registered to attend the conference where they will have breakout sessions on business involvement, leadership notebooks, funding, student clubs and more. Attendees will visit local schools throughout the day Friday to see the Leader in Me in action. Students will welcome the visitors to their school, give tours and show them how the habits are used in the classroom every day.

“The next couple days are going to be filled with learning,” Moore said.

“The school tours are going to be a big thing. We’re really excited to give these 168 educators that are coming together a good two-day opportunity to learn and discuss and synergize together.”

A symposium is being held in Vicksburg for the second consecutive year.

Moore said the success of this district has put a lot of eyes on the area making it a good location to host a symposium.

“It is really nice to be able to invite people to come to your community so they can see an initiative like the Leader in Me and how it’s changing the schools and how it’s going beyond the schools into the community,” VWSD communications specialist Christi Kilroy said. “It’s nice to be held up as an example of somebody that’s doing it really, really well.”

Moore said it takes time to become proficient at most things, and by having the symposium in Vicksburg, people can see a district that has spent years on the leadership model. The Vicksburg Warren School District is home to the only two Lighthouse Schools, schools that model leadership, in Mississippi — Bowmar and Bovina.

“It takes three to five years for schools to become a Lighthouse School, and a Lighthouse School is a school that has reached a certain level of success around their measurables in the school,” Moore said.

A day of seven habits training was held Wednesday for about 27 participants who wanted to learn the basis of the program in preparation for the symposium.

The training was led by Moore who has been working with the local school district for the past four years implementing the leadership model.