RYLA
Posted by Edward Hengel
RYLA stands for Rotary Youth Leadership Awards. It is a week long program held the last weekend in June at Mount Saint Mary in Newburgh, NY. The 110 conferees will experience strong leadership growth under the supervision of the counselors.
For many conferees the Rotary Youth Leadership Award Conference (RYLA) is a peak experience in their young lives. At RYLA the students have the opportunity to stretch and grow in an environment that is designed to allow them to be their enthusiastic and innovative selves. There is no outside pressure. The conferees all arrive as equals, thrown together tasked with accomplishing well defined goals within well defined parameters. How they go about it is up to them.
All the students at RYLA, from the first time conferees to the seasoned senior staff members, are treated and treat each other with respect. Everyone is expected to behave in a mature and responsible manner. With very few exceptions, when given the chance, the adolescents prove themselves worthy of the trust that is initially afforded them. However, being where you are supposed to be, when you are supposed to be there is absolute. Several other rules, the violation of which is a deal breaker, include no drinking, drugs or inter/intra gender surreptitious liaisons.
RYLA is structured into ten groups each assigned a task and facilitated by a Junior Counselor. The Junior Counselors are supported by several Senior Counselors who are in turn supported by Senior Staff members tasked with creating and supervising the day to day learning experiences, including guest speakers, a square dance, a talent show and a regular dance, as well as providing the facilities and supplies necessary for the conferees to accomplish their goals, such as the performances by the band, chorus, and Hollywood groups.
The ten Junior Counselors are chosen by the senior staff members at the end of a selection day from a pool of approximately 40 applicants who were the most recent conferees. All Senior Staff and newly appointed Junior Counselors then attend a Counselor training weekend where the facilitator skills they require are taught and reinforced. This is also the time for the Junior and Senior staff members to create the supportive bonds that will prove invaluable while at the conference. The Junior Counselors are the keystones to the success of RYLA. The quality of the conferees' RYLA experience is heavily dependent upon their Junior Counselor. This is why such care and attention is paid to their selection, training and support.
Whereas the Junior Staff is chosen by the Senior Staff they are in turn chosen by the RYLA Chairman from the pool of the previous year's Junior and Senior Staff. Each Senior Staff member is charged with a specific task leading up to and including the conference. The conference Secretary's work begins in earnest in January with arranging the initial meeting of the Senior Staff, where all the dates, job descriptions and timetables are laid out. The Program Director discusses any changes to the program while the Facilities Coordinator plans for the procurement of the rooms and equipment needed for the conference.
Other Senor Staff members include the Counselor Coordinator who is responsible for the selection process and the training of all the Junior and Senior Counselors; the Conference Director, who is charged with keeping the conference moving, and the procurement team that keeps us all well supplied with our daily needs. (i.e. water, art supplies, props, ice cream etc.)
Every night of the conference the entire Staff: Juniors and Seniors alike, meet to discuss the days events. It is here that we work out any problems and concerns. Everyone at RYLA is expected to be supportive of everyone else, the spirit of: "we are all responsible for each other and in this together," is what makes RYLA such a great experience for all involved.
All the students at RYLA, from the first time conferees to the seasoned senior staff members, are treated and treat each other with respect. Everyone is expected to behave in a mature and responsible manner. With very few exceptions, when given the chance, the adolescents prove themselves worthy of the trust that is initially afforded them. However, being where you are supposed to be, when you are supposed to be there is absolute. Several other rules, the violation of which is a deal breaker, include no drinking, drugs or inter/intra gender surreptitious liaisons.
RYLA is structured into ten groups each assigned a task and facilitated by a Junior Counselor. The Junior Counselors are supported by several Senior Counselors who are in turn supported by Senior Staff members tasked with creating and supervising the day to day learning experiences, including guest speakers, a square dance, a talent show and a regular dance, as well as providing the facilities and supplies necessary for the conferees to accomplish their goals, such as the performances by the band, chorus, and Hollywood groups.
The ten Junior Counselors are chosen by the senior staff members at the end of a selection day from a pool of approximately 40 applicants who were the most recent conferees. All Senior Staff and newly appointed Junior Counselors then attend a Counselor training weekend where the facilitator skills they require are taught and reinforced. This is also the time for the Junior and Senior staff members to create the supportive bonds that will prove invaluable while at the conference. The Junior Counselors are the keystones to the success of RYLA. The quality of the conferees' RYLA experience is heavily dependent upon their Junior Counselor. This is why such care and attention is paid to their selection, training and support.
Whereas the Junior Staff is chosen by the Senior Staff they are in turn chosen by the RYLA Chairman from the pool of the previous year's Junior and Senior Staff. Each Senior Staff member is charged with a specific task leading up to and including the conference. The conference Secretary's work begins in earnest in January with arranging the initial meeting of the Senior Staff, where all the dates, job descriptions and timetables are laid out. The Program Director discusses any changes to the program while the Facilities Coordinator plans for the procurement of the rooms and equipment needed for the conference.
Other Senor Staff members include the Counselor Coordinator who is responsible for the selection process and the training of all the Junior and Senior Counselors; the Conference Director, who is charged with keeping the conference moving, and the procurement team that keeps us all well supplied with our daily needs. (i.e. water, art supplies, props, ice cream etc.)
Every night of the conference the entire Staff: Juniors and Seniors alike, meet to discuss the days events. It is here that we work out any problems and concerns. Everyone at RYLA is expected to be supportive of everyone else, the spirit of: "we are all responsible for each other and in this together," is what makes RYLA such a great experience for all involved.