Formed by Being Seen

TeenPact is often described by what it teaches—discipleship, civics, servant leadership. Those words are accurate, but they are incomplete. What stays with students long after the schedules and sessions fade is something quieter and more enduring: formation shaped by attention, which communicates value.

Being Seen Made All the Difference

Alexia Karis Smith was in her second year as an alumna, walking back from lunch alone. “I was feeling lonely and unsure of how to join a group or conversation.”

That’s when the Program Director noticed her.

“He started talking to me, asking about my day,” Alexia Karis says. “That simple act of kindness has changed the way I see my interactions—a simple action in a single minute can show Christ’s love.”

It was not a dramatic moment. There was no stage, no microphone, no lesson attached. But it mattered. And the impact remained.

At TeenPact, moments like this are not accidental. Student leaders are trained to intentionally invest in each individual—to notice, to engage, to treat each student as a person who is worth time and care. 

That brief interaction reshaped how Alexia Karis understood her faith in practice. “TeenPact has helped me see my faith as an integral part of my identity,” she explains, “driving me to engage with the culture.”

A Culture Shaped by Attention

Students arrive at TeenPact from a world saturated with evaluation. These young people are constantly measuring themselves—through grades, performance, comparison, and an endless digital mirror that reflects back curated versions of everyone else’s life. They are known, perhaps, for what they produce or project. They are less often known simply as themselves, or shown their intrinsic worth as a child of God.

TeenPact offers something different. Before students are asked to lead, speak, or engage, they are met as individuals. They are called by name. They are listened to. They are challenged, yes—but within a culture that affirms their worth first.

That culture changes how students understand leadership. “TeenPact has given me a passion for seeing people beyond the politics,” the alumna says, “fighting not only for the values I believe in, but to make friends with those I engage with.”

This is formation at work. Conviction and compassion are no longer in tension. Faith is no longer theoretical. Influence begins with how a person treats the one standing in front of them.

TeenPact helps students ask not only what they believe, but why—and how those beliefs shape the way they live. It trains young people to engage culture with confidence and humility, conviction and care. Leadership, they learn, is not about power, but about service.

A Life Launched, Not Concluded

For many students, TeenPact begins early. “My first TeenPact State Class was when I was 8 years old,” Alexia Karis recalls. “I went because my brother had gone, because it was one of the ‘big kid’ events, and because my mom signed me up.”

What began as participation became understanding. “As I went year after year, I grew to understand why TeenPact did what it did. I understood my faith should affect how I live out my life and how I engage with the culture. Most importantly, I understood that I could make a difference.”

That understanding did not end when the program did. It carried her forward—into civic engagement, advocacy, and a deeper sense of calling. “Because of TeenPact,” she says, “I know that I am called by God to faithfully step into culture and make an impact for Him.”

TeenPact is not meant to be a conclusion. It is a beginning. “It is the launching pad of your life,” she explains—a chapter that leads into faithful presence wherever God calls.

TeenPact matters because it calls and trains young people to live faithfully and boldly in a culture that often tells them their voice doesn’t matter. At a time when truth is challenged and faith is pushed to the margins, it equips students to engage with clarity, courage, and purpose, always coupled with graciousness.

That kind of formation does not happen in isolation. It is made possible by parents who entrust their children, by students who show up ready to grow, by staff—both volunteers and employees—who give their time and attention, by board members who steward the mission, and by donors who make the work financially sustainable. Each plays a role in creating an environment where young people are not merely informed, but formed—prepared to live as thoughtful, faithful ambassadors for Christ in every aspect of life.

TeenPact has touched the lives of thousands of students. The impact, however, extends far beyond them—rippling outward as those students carry what they have been given into their families, their communities, and the culture they are called to serve.