The lyrics to Justin Bieber’s song “Baby” chorused by a group of high-school students rang down the hallway. It was after hours, but the school was teeming with excited energy. Laughter spilled out of classrooms, students bounded from room to room and announcements crackled over the , calling out new activities and prize draw winners. For many students, it was their first time participating in a school-based lock-in-style event. At the center was leadership teacher, Kevin Low, BSc, BEd, MEd.
For more than a decade, Kevin has supported students in discovering their potential as leaders within their schools and communities. He began teaching science, but when a school administrator recognized his strong connections with students and encouraged him to take on leadership education, his role as an educator evolved.
Under Kevin’s guidance, his students have organized initiatives supporting organizations such as food banks, Mamas for Mamas, Salvation Army, and Helen’s Acres Farm. At , Mount Boucherie Secondary School, he co-founded Walk for Mental Health, a student-led initiative that has raised more than $30,000 for youth mental health services and grew into a flagship school event focused on self-care and stigma reduction.
“Leadership is about getting students to run events that impact others, whether that’s the school, the community or causes they’re passionate about,” he says. “It’s about helping them see that they can actually make a difference.”
Now at Rutland Senior Secondary School, Kevin has continued to apply this approach by supporting students in the planning and delivery of their first large-scale, a Wellness Evening.
“December is a time when a lot of people are so focused on giving to others that they forget to take care of themselves,” says Kevin. “Some of our students felt there weren’t enough visible mental health supports, so they wanted to do something meaningful that supported well-being and helped reduce stigma.”
Led by a core group of six student organizers and supported by nearly 40 student volunteers, the evening featured games, creative activities, sports, music, prizes donated by local businesses and, most memorably, visits from the UBC Okanagan BARK therapy dogs.
“The therapy dogs are always the most populated room at our events,” he says. “They help reduce stress and anxiety, especially during really busy times.”
Kevin has a personal connection to BARK. As a former student at UBC Okanagan, he remembers how meaningful his visits with the dogs were.
“I remember going into the BARK room during exam season for the first time,” he says. “Just petting the dogs brought my stress and anxiety levels down during a really busy time.”
Inviting BARK into schools has also created an unexpected benefit, helping bridge the gap between secondary and post-secondary life by offering students an early, welcoming glimpse into a campus wellness support.
“Having university students, handlers and the dogs all in one space helps students see that university might not be so scary after all,” he says.
For Kevin, one of the most meaningful moments came before the event even began as he watched his student leaders energize one another, welcome middle school students and step confidently into their roles.
“They were smiling, excited and ready to serve others,” he says. “That’s when you know it’s working.”
Throughout the evening, students weren’t just hosting activities; they were practicing leadership in real time, like communicating with new people, solving problems as they arise and taking responsibility for something larger than themselves. As Kevin often reminds his students, leadership is learned by doing.
From Left to Right: Jayden Stead, student leader, Kevin Low and Mayor Milsom, West Kelowna
Looking ahead, Kevin hopes to continue growing leadership programming within School District 23 by building new flagship events and expanding opportunities for students to engage with community partners such as Foundry Kelowna and other local organizations. Central to that vision is creating space for students to bring forward their own ideas, whether large-scale initiatives or smaller, relationship-driven acts of service.
“I’ve got students coming to me saying, ‘Can we go across the street to the retirement home and help people learn how to text or use computers?’” he says. “They just want to go and help because they care.”
Building on the momentum of the Wellness Evening, Kevin hopes to establish a new flagship leadership event, one that continues to evolve year over year and reflects the values and passions of students themselves. The common theme between all of the events however is that these are events by students for students that develop skills beyond high school that are invaluable.
“These events always start small,” he says. “But when students see that their ideas can grow and actually impact others, it just keeps building.”