Each year, thousands of young
people take part in the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA)
program worldwide. Young people ages 14-30 chosen for their
leadership potential attend an
all-expenses-paid
seminar, camp, or workshop to discuss leadership skills and to
learn those skills through practice. Rotary clubs and districts
select participants and facilitate the event's curriculum.
RYLA aims to:
-
Demonstrate
Rotary's respect and concern for youth;
-
Provide an
effective training experience for selected youth and
potential leaders;
-
Encourage
leadership of youth by youth; and
-
Recognize
publicly young people who are rendering service to their
communities.
RYLA was officially adopted by
Rotary International in 1971, and is one of the most significant
and fastest-growing programs of Rotary service. RYLA programs
often lead to the formation or strengthening of
Rotaract and
Interact clubs. RYLA participants often go on to become
Youth Exchange students or
Ambassadorial Scholars.
(Portions of the
above have been copied from the Rotary International website
located at
www.rotary.org.)
