WVHS students thank local Rotary for sponsoring their 2025 RYLA experience

Last Wednesday, October 29, five Warwick Valley High School students attended the Warwick Rotary meeting to share their experiences at the 2025 Rotary Youth Leadership Award Conference (RYLA), and to thank the local chapter for sponsoring their enrollment in the program. Last summer, Warwick students AJ Kobrick, Aidan Stubbs, Evan Qualiano, Anika Brezina, and Miles Xavier Allen attended the week-long leadership conference held at Mount Saint Mary College in Newburgh, NY.

RYLA is held every summer. It is a five-day overnight leadership conference that brings high school sophomores from specific Rotary districts together on the Mount Saint Mary campus to develop their leadership skills through fun-filled activities and events. These include collaborating with fellow RYLA attendees on group projects and team-building exercises, engaging with interactive presentations, learning from educational panels, and listening to inspirational speakers, from peer mentors to community leaders. 

The team-building aspects of RYLA push students to grow outside their comfort zones, helping them develop interpersonal skills to become confident, positive community members and leaders. RYLA students also have the benefit of experiencing life on a college campus, staying in dorms, eating at the dining hall, and using college facilities. The invaluable insights they gather help inform the students' post-graduation plans and college readiness.

RYLA aligns with our district's Portrait of a Graduate, in that the conference builds communication and problem-solving skills and teaches effective strategies for dynamic school and community leaders. There is a strong focus on civic duty, and pathways are are illuminated for students who want to turn motivation into action.

Of course, they also have fun and build lasting friendships while they're at it!

Thank you to the Warwick Rotary for sponsoring these five Warwick Valley students! The students could not have been more enthused to share their experiences and gratitude with the assembled Rotarians. Both the district and the Warwick Rotary Club are excited about the interest and excitement that continues to grow around this annual program.

Does RYLA sound like something for you? Visit Mary Fox in the WVHS Guidance Office to learn all about it.