Sign-ups have begun for the Newtown Florist Club's annual summer leadership course for young women.

The six and one-half week course, offered to girls ages 10 to 17, is titled Current Issues in Leadership and Peacemaking Education.

"It's basically to help young women achieve their goals," said Faye Bush, executive director of the Newtown Florist Club. "They also will learn more about leadership skills."

The course will be from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 29 through July 13 and will meet at the Fair Street Learning Center.

Girls who participate will receive one high school credit for the course, Bush said.

A certified public school teacher will lead the course, which will be separated into two classes based on the girls' ages.

One will be for girls ages 10-13, the other for girls ages 14-17.

This is the seventh year that the club has offered the course to girls. The curriculum was written by a former Newtown Florist Club staff member based on two main types of research.

There is a videotaped and written interview study of the leadership characteristics and heritage of the women in the Newtown Florist Club, a local community organization which has been around for more than 50 years.

Also, the class presents research on the leadership characteristics and peacemaking histories of diverse women, from the dissertation, "Contributions of Women's Embodied Knowing to Education for Leadership and Peacemaking."

Bush said the girls will be in class the first part of the day, and speakers will come in the afternoon to present a variety of topics.

On Thursday afternoons, the girls will have the opportunity to go swimming, and they will take educational field trips every Friday.

Transportation will be provided for the class, and there is a $40 registration fee.

The deadline to register is May 18.

Bush said the program has been successful and she has seen many girls go on to college after completing the course.

"The course is really a good course for the young people," she said. "They learn more about leadership skills ... and how to be good leaders in the community."

Bush said one goal of the Newtown Florist Club, which has about 35 members, is to look at the environment and the community.

They also want to focus on young people, she said, "ensuring that they learn leadership skills and different things to carry them through life."

Contact: acox@gainesvilletimes.com, (770) 718-3426

Originally published Saturday, April 28, 2007