On Feb. 23, a group of CHS sophomores, juniors and seniors will attend the 14th annual Homer Dickerson Youth Ethics Conference at the Ronald Regan Presidential Library in Simi Valley. The conference will allow students to engage in discussions that test their ability to answer questions based on ethical topics and scenarios.

Students, teachers and other adults will be divided into groups of eight to 10 to thoroughly discuss these issues. Students will also listen to a guest speaker, who will educate them on the importance of ethics. The speaker will be responsible for choosing a topic in popular culture for the attendees to discuss. In previous years, discussion subjects have pertained to underage drinking, drug abuse, stealing and cheating. The conference will begin at 7 a.m. and will end at 12 p.m. It will also include a breakfast buffet, where students will have the chance to meet other attendees from different high schools.

“Students have a unique opportunity to hear how teens from other schools and different backgrounds feel about certain issues. I think students will find the discussions eye-opening and enriching,” said event coordinator and College and Career Center advisor Robin Lutsky.

The annual conference commemorates the life of Homer Dickerson, who stressed the importance of good principles as head minister of the Rotary Club and Los Robles Hospital. The purpose of the conference is to continue to inform students of what Dickerson displayed throughout his ethical career.

“It really teaches CHS students that they are not alone; people will bring you down and out all types of pressure on you, but the conference allows students to come to the realization that despite the challenges of everyday life, maintaining ethics and values are very important,” said junior and previous conference participant Aaron Sugano.

This year, Lutsky hopes more students will attend the event and will participate in the conference’s ethical scenario writing contest. Students can contribute to the conference’s annual debate topic by using their writing to voice their opinions and views on various ethical issues. Applications for both the writing competition and the conference are still being accepted.

“This year, I would like to reach even more students. Particularly, I would love to include students who think this would be boring,” said Lutsky. “I hope they [will discover] a sense of community and [they will] learn something about making good decisions.”