Guide for District 7850
Crystal Smart
District 7850 RYLA Chair
[email protected]
Rotary International
District 7850
What is RYLA?
The Rotary Youth Leadership Awards is Rotary's leadership training program for young people.
RYLA emphasizes leadership, citizenship, and personal growth, and aims to:
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Demonstrate Rotary's respect and concern for youth while at the same time exposing
them to Rotary’s values of service, high ethical standards, and world peace;
Encourage and assist young people in responsible and effective voluntary youth
leadership by providing them with a valuable training experience;
Foster continued & stronger leadership of youth by youth;
Recognize and reward publicly young people who are rendering service to their
communities as youth leaders.
History of RYLA
Originating in 1959 in Queensland, Australia, RYLA was created as a festival highlighting local
youth organized in honor of a royal visit by Princess Victoria. The Rotary Youth Leadership
Award Program was officially adopted by Rotary International in 1971. Conducted on a district level,
RYLA offers Rotarians a special opportunity to take part in mentoring the developing qualities of
leadership and good citizenship among young people in their communities.
Who is eligible to attend RYLA?
RYLA participants in District 7850 are students who are completing their freshman or
sophomore year (approximately 14-16 years of age). While each local club may develop its own
eligibility requirements for accepting applicants, RYLA participants are generally young people who
display or have displayed, or are potential candidates to display, the ability to assume a leadership role.
How can I become involved with RYLA?
District 7850’s RYLA committee welcomes volunteers at a variety of commitment levels, from
those who wish to help plan the weekend, to those who would simply like to attend a portion of
the program to see what it’s all about. Localized support is also needed for publicizing the
program and providing support for the selected student(s). So, whether you are looking for
opportunities in your own town, or would like to get involved in the creation of the program, you
can begin by speaking to your club’s RYLA chair, or club president. At the district level, please
contact District Chair Crystal Smart at [email protected].
LOCAL ROTARY CLUB RESPONSIBILITIES
Each participating Rotary Club within District 7850 agrees to the following responsibilities:
1.
Publicize the Program - The local Rotary Club’s RYLA Coordinator should supply their
local media with news releases describing the purpose and merits of the program and
announcing the intention of the Rotary Club to participate;
2.
Promote & Distribute Applications - The local Rotary Club’s RYLA Coordinator should
publicize the program to young people through the local high school(s), churches, and
youth groups to invite their youth to apply for the program;
3.
Reviewing Applications and Selection of Candidates - Establishment of the selection
process and the actual selection of candidates should be carried out by the local Rotary
Clubs. By careful review of the applications, the field should be narrowed down to two
(2) candidates and at least one alternate (preferably of the same sex as the candidate) in
case one of your candidates determines they cannot attend the conference. In addition, if
you want to fund more than two students, the district may be able to accept your
alternate(s) into the program pending attendance results;
4.
Enrolling Candidate(s) & Payment - When the local Rotary Club selects its candidate(s),
the Club must pay the fee per candidate and submit the proper District application forms
by the established deadline. The fee and forms will be available by District Team
Training Seminar annually;
5.
Engaging Candidate(s) - To better acquaint the candidate about the principles of Rotary
service and to provide an opportunity for Rotarians in the sponsoring Club to meet their
candidate, each candidate should be invited to attend a meeting of the sponsoring Rotary
Club before RYLA begins. Invite the student to club events or service projects. It also
doesn’t hurt to invite the parents (who might make good potential members!). Remember
that it creates a feeling of uncertainty on the part of the candidate(s) if you go months at a
time without contact;
6.
Preparing Candidate(s) - Verify that your candidates have transportation to and from the
RYLA Program. If it is not available provide it. Stay active in your candidate(s)
preparation for RYLA to ensure the student(s) and parents can enjoy participation.
7.
Maintaining Contact with the Candidate(s) - Invite your candidate back to a meeting after
participating in RYLA so that the club might learn how their sponsorship dollars were put
to beneficial use, and to present a certificate of completion to the candidate (these will be
provided to your club by the district committee). RYLA alumni make great future
Inter/Rotaractors, GSE Team Members, and Speech Contest participants. They can also
help you recruit/select future RYLArians.
SUGGESTED STUDENT SELECTION GUIDE
This should be a rewarding experience for each local Rotary Club. Clubs may request that the guidance
counselor or other staff member at the local school submit the names of students who are currently
freshman or sophomores (9th or 10th graders) who may be or could become youth leaders. This may not
be necessary if your Club already knows of an appropriate student who possesses all of the necessary
qualifications. If either of these avenues is not appropriate for your Club, the Club should publicize the
program and request applications through high schools, academies, churches, and/or youth groups in the
community. Each Club can decide whether or not to accept relatives of Club members as applicants.
To approve applicants, each Club could establish a selection committee consisting of school officials and
Rotarians, or can simply appoint a single school official or club member to make the decision. Normally
two (2) finalists are identified, however, some Clubs, which have the financial resources, may elect to
send additional candidates. Clubs may determine their own selection process. Finalists can be selected
from a pool of 4-6 potential candidates from the applications, and personal interviews can be arranged
and conducted, or all applicants can be interviewed. During the personal interview, no Rotarian or other
adult should be alone in a room with the student(s). For the interview process, take note of the student’s
appearance, attitude, and leadership potential. Open ended questions should be asked in order to probe
for evidence of leadership. A few examples of questions that may be asked are as follows:
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What is your definition of leadership?
Can you identify someone, living or deceased, who you thing is/was by your standards a good
leader, and why?
Why do you want to attend the RYLA Conference?
What do you feel you could contribute to the RYLA Conference?
What do you enjoy doing in school?
What do you enjoy doing when you are not in school?
Describe what you think the local Rotary Club does for/provides to your community?
Following the personal interview the selection committee will select the best candidate(s) and a runner-up
(who is preferably of the same sex as a candidate in order for housing arrangements to be easily made at
RYLA). Each Club should contact each candidate as soon as possible and inform him/her that he/she has
been chosen to attend the RYLA Conference. Speak to the candidates parent(s) as well about this
opportunity. Obtain a verbal commitment that they intend to attend the conference and follow-up your
conversation with a letter or email. Inform each candidate that they will be contacted by the District’s
RYLA Committee with information about the weekend in May. Do not forget to give each candidate the
name of the club RYLA contact and his/her contact numbers and respective addresses in case questions or
problems arise.
Each club selects its candidates differently; feel free to develop a process that suits your clubs desires.
The District RYLA committee trusts your judgment of the best possible young leaders. If you have any
questions, would like any assistance, or simply want to hear about what other clubs are doing, please
contact District Chair Crystal Smart [email protected], or attend a RYLA informational session at the
annual District Team Training Seminar.
Specific Information for RYLA in District 7850
1) A grid of the activities conducted during the weekend, and the District’s goals of these activities
can be obtained from District Chair, Crystal Smart. While you are welcome to share information
with your candidate(s) it is the District’s preference that the student(s) NOT know every activity
they will encounter during their time at RYLA, as we like them to approach the weekend with an
open mind.
2) The District provides each RYLArian with a comprehensive introductory packet upon enrollment
by the club. This packet will introduce the RYLArian to the weekend activities, goals, and
expectations. It will also include a Packing List, so that no student will arrive unprepared. If
your RYLArian does not receive this packet within 2 weeks of registration, please contact
registrar Larry Vars via the information on the club checklist.
3) Rotarians are welcome to come to any and all parts of the RYLA weekend in order to observe
their student(s) or simply to learn more about the program.
4) Parents are discouraged from attending any part of the RYLA weekend that is outside of the
established visiting time. We have found the student(s) have difficulty settling in to the weekend
when under the eye of a parent. We welcome parents, and any relatives or friends, to join us for
Brunch on the Sunday of RYLA, and to stay for a presentation of the weekend, as well as the
motivational speaker.
5) All overnight guests (including Rotarians) staying on campus must submit to a background check,
and must receive approval from the District Committee (as they are the only ones who will know
whether or not there is housing available for additional guests on campus).
6) The District cannot accept students who cannot commit to staying for the entire length of the
program, Friday morning to Sunday afternoon. The weekend activities involve a large amount of
team building, which cannot happen if a team member is absent. Likewise, it completely changes
a team dynamic to lose a member before the end of the program. The District team advises
anyone encountering a difficulty in this with a candidate to make any discussions around
scheduling conflicts into a lesson on Rotary’s Four-Way Test: is it fair to all concerned?
7) The District cannot refund any monies paid for a RYLArian should that candidate be unable to
attend, even due to sickness or family emergency. We encourage clubs to maintain vigilant
contact with their finalist(s) so that this situation can be avoided. We also encourage clubs to have
alternates, and maintain active communication with those alternates, so that easy substitutions can
be made without a loss of money to the club.
8) The District asks that clubs try to have an alternate(s) who are of the same sex as the selected
candidate(s) so that should last minute changes arise, housing can still be secured on campus for
the alternate.
9) RYLA is a “break-even” endeavor for the District, meaning the cost charged per attendee is
solely to pay the cost of the program and not to raise funds.