The Oxford-Lafayette County Chamber of Commerce is accepting applications for the 2020 Junior Leadership Program.

The program, which is open to all 10th grade students who live in Oxford and Lafayette County, is designed to help high school students develop the essential leadership skills to be successful in the future. Participants in the program will work together during nine group sessions, plus time invested in actual community projects that require them to develop and implement leadership skills.

“Through these sessions they see the variety of professions and services offered here in Oxford,” said Lolita Gregory, Junior Leadership chair. “Going through this course may give them a better understanding of various jobs and help in making career decisions.”

The training sessions include topics on leadership, team building, medicine, education, legal field and law enforcement, government, career development and the arts. In each session, students will meet top government officials, university professionals, medical specialists and local business leaders.

Onsite tours of local facilities such as Baptist Memorial Hospital – North Mississippi, the Powerhouse, Oxford’s City Hall, the University of Mississippi and other locations will be included in the program.

The program runs from late January through mid-April and meets on Monday afternoons from 4:15 to 6:15 p.m. There have been more than 500 students who have graduated from the Junior Leadership Program since it began in 1998.

Acceptance into the 25-person class is based on completion of the required form and documents by the deadline of Jan. 10. There is a tuition fee of $50 upon acceptance into the program. For those selected, there will be an orientation held on Jan. 21. The program will conclude with a graduation ceremony on April 14.

For more information, or to fill out an application, visit oxfordms.com or the Chamber of Commerce’s office at 299 Jackson Avenue West. Any other questions can be answered by calling Pam Swain at 662-234-4651.