Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) is an intensive leadership experience organized by Rotary Clubs and Rotary districts for young leaders to develop leadership skills and make connections while having fun. 

By attending Rotary Youth Leadership Awards, you have the opportunity to connect with your community and around the world to build communication and problem-solving skills, discover strategies for becoming a dynamic leader in your school or community, learn from community leaders, inspirational speakers, and peer mentors, unlock your potential to turn motivation into action and have fun while forming lasting friendships. 

Since an official adoption of Rotary Youth Leadership Awards in 1971 by Rotary International, today more than half of 529 Rotary districts hold Rotary Youth Leadership Awards events annually. Over ten thousand young people from all over the world attend Rotary Youth Leadership Awards every year, making Rotary Youth Leadership Awards one of the most significant youth leadership training programs.

How does one sign up to attend the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards at Pitman?

Well first, you must be recommended to attend by your counselor or principle. They will flag you for an informational Pride Time. If you are still interested in attending, you are required to pick up an application packet. Within the packet, you are required to get three recommendations from your teachers, receive a signature from the attendance office (for adequate attendance), and write a list or paragraph on why you should attend Rotary Youth Leadership Awards and represent Pitman.

Your application is reviewed and if you are deemed acceptable, you will be called for an interview. The interviewers will have a copy of your application form, the list you wrote, your transcript, and a few written questions. They will be judging you based on your leadership skills and character.

They will ask questions such as “what are the qualities a leader should possess” and “who do you look up to”. Of course, the questions will become more and more difficult as the interview proceeds and they will become more and more tailored based on your previous answers and your written points.

After interviewing all of the applicants, they will choose 2 people of each gender to go as delegates along with 1 person of each gender to act as a backup.

Once the day arrives to leave, the boys go to Calvin Crest and the girls go to Camp Oakhurst. On February 14, I left to go to Calvin Crest packing for snow. Fortunately, the weather was nice and there was no snow.

You are placed in a cabin upon arrival. You will have a plethora of different challenges and activities that will involve your cabin mates later in the trip.

Rotary Youth Leadership Awards is a leadership camp that is run by the students. There are three main groups to join: Music and Entertainment, Newspaper and Yearbook, and Engineering. 

In Music and Entertainment, you organize a show at the end of the day. In Newspaper and Yearbook, you create a slideshow/movie that is given to everyone at the end of the trip. In Engineering, you create trophies that are awarded to the different groups at the end of the trip.

The food is splendid. They offer a wide variety of dishes and desserts throughout the trip.

At the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards, you are given the opportunity to make lasting friendships with people from your different groups. It also hones your leadership skills.