Mount Pleasant High School juniors Angelina Hernandez and Cecilia Phan were chosen to attend the Rotary Youth Leadership Award (RYLA) weekend camp after an application and interview process with local Rotarians. The camp was held February 24-26 at Clements Scout Camp in Athens, TX. Students from high schools in the 41 clubs in Rotary District 5830, which is made up of northeast Texas and part of Oklahoma, were invited to participate.

Upon arrival, Hernandez and Phan were placed in groups made up of 15-20 students and participated in ice breaker activities that fostered a sense of team building. Through the activities, students worked on leadership skills such as trust, communication, listening, problem solving, and speaking to others. The weekend culminated in a ropes course challenge that including zip lines, a rope bridge, and climbing a telephone pole where the students had to put their newly developed leadership skills to use.

MPHS senior, Reese Ball, participated in RYLA as a junior and was asked to return as a senior staffer, an honor bestowed on a very small, select group. Ball will have the option to return as a staffer every year that she is available.

Mike Hall, RYLA chair for the Mount Pleasant Rotary Club, said “Through RYLA, students form lasting relationships and develop leadership skills and a servant outlook that is unrivaled by other programs. As a Marine, I went through the Crucible which is 2 ½ days of simulated warfare after 13 weeks of training where our leadership skills are tested. RYLA does all that in a single weekend. I have seen RYLA change students’ lives. Kids who had no idea how to be a leader have come out of RYLA as leaders.”

MPHS has the application and interview process available to all juniors once per year. Current sophomores interested in attending RYLA should look for the application when the 2023-2024 school year begins.

Pictured:

1: 2023 MPHS RYLA participants, Angelina Hernandez and Cecilia Phan

2: 2023 MPHS RYLA Senior Staffer, Reese Ball