Rotary Youth Leadership Awards
Rotary International District 6170
What is RYLA?
Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) is a leadership training program for high school sophomores and juniors. Young people are chosen by local clubs to attend a 3-day camp organized by District 6170 Rotarians.
The RYLA program enables these young people to learn and develop leadership and communication skills while having fun and making new friends. RYLA provides the opportunity to refine skills and explore pertinent topics with their peers and elders.
For Rotarians, RYLA offers the chance to help develop leaders, share valuable expertise, and bridge the gap between generations.
What does RYLA offer?
During a RYLA program, students will:
· Gain exposure to issues and exchange ideas with other teens
· Learn about opportunities for service worldwide and in their own communities
· Discuss creative approaches for problem solving with other teens and community leaders
· Meet Rotary leaders and learn about Rotary programs
District 6170 RYLA is held at Camp Winnamocka near Arkadelphia. Campers participate in a variety of outdoor events, such as kayaking, the ‘rock-climbing’ wall, high and low ropes courses and treasure hunts. All activities are structured to encourage teamwork and leadership. Students also participate in learning sessions with community leaders and Rotary leaders. Campers are supervised by a Rotarian camp director, Winnamocka staff and Rotaract counselors.
This year our District will continue the very successful Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) program. This program allows individual Rotary Clubs to honor outstanding local high school sophomores and juniors for their leadership potential, service mindedness, and academic record. As you may know, this honor includes a three-day leadership camp we call "Camp RYLA".
The cost to the club is $225 per student. Last year, clubs sent as few as one student or as many as four. Most clubs sent at least two students. Some clubs use Wal-Mart grants to sponsor four students! Camp RYLA will be limited to 70 students in order to provide all of the quality activities Camp Winnamocka offers. We will accept the first 70 paid registrations. If you would like to reserve a certain number of spots for your students, your club can “pre-pay” the registration fees before you have selected your students.
Also, please make sure that the students who apply can commit to attending the entire camp. Due to the short duration of the camp and to ensure good team-building among the group, requests to arrive late, leave early or to be absent from any portion of the camp will be denied.
In addition, please note that this is an active, outdoor-oriented program in a rural summer camp-like setting. To benefit the most from the camp, the student should be physically able to undertake the scheduled activities. Of course, we will do our very best to accommodate students with limitations. Please note that the children and grandchildren of Rotarians ARE eligible for RYLA.
In addition to the payment of the registration fee, we ask that the sponsor Rotary Club provide transportation to the camp. This provides an important opportunity for the student(s) and a Rotarian to interact. Once the student is delivered to the camp on Thursday, your Club's representative's duties are done and he or she may depart. The Rotary Club may or may not decide to provide transportation home. If the Rotary chooses not to provide round trip transportation, the student's parents will be responsible.
Please communicate with your students' and parents' to make sure transportation home is arranged. I will provide your RYLA contact person with a map and specific instructions closer to time for the camp. We also hope that you will invite any students you sponsor to visit a meeting of your club either as your guest or as the program after they have returned from Camp RYLA.
You can learn more about Camp Winnamocka, its facilities, and the activities it offers at www.winnamocka.com.
STEPS TO SEND STUDENTS TO CAMP RYLA
- Decide how many students you would like to sponsor. Apply for Wal-Mart or other grants for funding, if necessary. Clubs may “pre-pay” registration fees for their desired number of students to guarantee space at Camp RYLA, but that is optional.
- Recruit students to apply for the scholarship. You can direct students to the District 6170 website where they can access the application form in Adobe Acrobat format. The application is a “fill-able” form. Students can type in their personal information and then print it out to turn in to your club.
- Select your students. Please make sure that your students can attend the entire camp.
- Make sure the Sponsor Club information at the top is completed of each application.
- Submit $225 and a completed application for each of your students no later than DECEMBER 15, 2009 to:
Lori Ross, RYLA Chair
Southern Bancorp
601 Main St.
Arkadelphia, Ark 71923
- *Please note that Camp RYLA will be limited to 70 students. We will accept the first 70 paid registrations we receive.
- In early March, contact your students and arrange to transport them to Camp RYLA on Thursday.
- Have a member of your club drive students to Camp Winnamocka in Arkadelphia to arrive between to arrive between 4:00 and 5:00PM.
- Arrange to have parents or Rotarians pick up the campers at Camp Winnamocka by 11 a.m. on Sunday.
- AFTER THE CAMP: Ask students to visit your club either as a guest or as the program presenter to tell about their Camp RYLA experience.
I hope your Club will consider selecting a student or students for the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards. We would love to have 100% participation by the clubs this year! Thank you for your interest in this worthwhile project. Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns. My e-mail address is lross@banksouthern.com. My work telephone is 870-246-1063 or you can reach me after hours on my cell 870-403-8938.
Sincerely,
Lori Ross
RYLA Chair – District 6170
Click here for a RYLA Application in WORD
Click here for a RYLA Application as a PDF
