LEADERSHIP: Poly Interact club members attend a three-day leadership camp.
By Guadalupe Meza, Staff Writer
Poly students Claudia Pascual (11), Cameron Brewer (11), Jade Sham (11), and Gisselle Islas (11) attended the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) camp. RYLA is a leadership training camp for juniors designed to help students become better leaders and citizens.
This opportunity was offered to members of the Interact Club, which focuses on community service. Club members had to fill out an application and submit it in order to be selected. The Riverside Rotary Club, which focuses on humanitarian services, helped organize and sponsor the entire trip for select Poly Interact club members.
The attendees participated in character building activities as well as social exercises such as mock job interviews that will help them prepare for real situations. During the retreat, community leaders, peer mentors, and motivational speakers such as Scott Greenberg, offered advice and motivation on how students could lead fulfilling lives.
It was a memorable trip for all four juniors that attended the retreat. “RYLA made everyone feel welcomed at all times and everyone was able to make friends,” Pascual said. The group kept to themselves at first because they did not know anyone else, but that changed when they began to do ice breakers. “We weren’t so excited to do ice breakers because we were tired, but we were put in some awkward situations which ended up being really fun.” Pascual said.
The camp was filled with valuable knowledge: “I learned so much, especially with the interview that I did because it really helped me realize the things I should do and what I should avoid in the future,” Pascual said. They all said to have felt a sense of connection with each other because they were able to realize that every single one of them has difficulties and that they could depend on each other for help.