Written by Olivia Simmons
Youth Leadership Atmore (YLA) held its second session at United Bank on Nov. 8. The class met at the bank and had a light breakfast before getting down to business. The session was intended to show the class how to make resumes appealing and how to represent us well during an interview.

A few days prior to this session, we submitted resumes for a position as a parttime teller. In a deeper sense, this session helped us gain some insight on the application process, dressing for success and speaking during an interview for a job, scholarship or club membership. During this session, we met with many of the prominent figures of the bank including Bob Jones, Anne Hetzel, Emilee Waters and Lisa Hastings. Mrs. Hastings expressed that it is extremely important when being social with others to be connected and give your undivided attention. Technology has disabled many Americans today. We do not remember things based off memory, and we are always glued to our phones.

When we started discussing the “do’s” and “don’ts” of interviewing, many of us said that you should wear appropriate clothing, smile, avoid bringing someone disruptive with you, but the best part was when we had someone come in to actually show us how we should and should not act during an interview. The first lady to be interviewed did not make eye contact, was slouched over in her chair, chewed her gum loudly, and took phone calls during the interview. She was asked if she had ever had any experience handling money, and she replied saying she had been a cashier at a store. The hilarious part was when she mentioned having an altercation with her manager because she had taken a candy bar off the shelf and ate it without paying for it like it was not a problem. The next lady was dressed appropriately, had a firm handshake, made eye contact, and sat up straight.

At lunchtime, we enjoyed our pizza, chips, cookies and drinks. During this time, we started discussing what projects we would like to organize and how we would raise the funds. We were able to tour the bank where we discovered all the different departments. Next, the individual interviewing portion began where we had someone give us some pointers on how we could improve and tell us how well we did. To wrap up the session, we voted for class officers. Miss Bailey Hayles is the President, Johnika Roberts is Vice President, Anna Grace Janes is Treasurer and Olivia Simmons is Secretary.

Overall, I believe that this session was incredibly successful. It is only the beginning of many goals the Youth Leadership of Atmore, class of 2018, is aiming to achieve. We are determined to make a positive impact on this city.