Several students who attended the National Youth Service Initiative Forum held last week at the Sonesta Beach Hotel Resort felt that youngsters who were challenged needed to be present.

CedarBridge Academy student Sharla Bean felt they were unfortunately preaching to the converted, as all the students from her school who had been invited were "A" students.

"The kids who sit on the wall were the ones who really needed to be invited to this, as they are only speaking to those who have made the choice to be successful already." Patricka Ferguson, 20, said: "It has been inspiring to see that they are passionate about our futures.

Fillipe Costa, 15, a student at Mount Saint Agnes School said that he hoped the dedication would last and that the organisers would not give up to easily, as many times issues are spoken about and not carried through.

Another Mount Saint Agnes student Nicola Arnold said she enjoyed the exchange of ideas during the conference.

CedarBridge Academy student Kamal Bashir was concerned that there was a lot said, but wondered how much would be carried through in the future.

The 14-year-old was excited to have attended the conference and was also pleased to see how many organisations were involved. The aim was to have as many community project workers and young people present so that a report could be prepared on future youth developments.

One of the keynote speakers was Sgt. DeLacy Davis of the East Orange County Police Department, New Jersey, who said that governments could not give youth organisations enough money.

Sgt. Davis, who is also a firearms instructor, has run successful youth groups for the last two years and has decreased the amount of young offenders in his area by 33 percent after studies showed that most juvenile crimes were committed between 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Sgt. Davis said the answers are with the youth and we need to incorporate them into the process.

Geoff Thompson MBE, who was five times world karate champion, and is executive chair of the Youth Charter for Sports in the United Kingdom was another keynote speaker.

He said: "The attitude with older people is often `do as I say and not as I do', but the youth aren't buying that anymore.

It has always been a good time for change and remember when one door closes a window or another door will open.

"Always have a few plans in this life, plan a, plan b and plan c."