Adventures in Citizenship Opportunity for Youth
Posted by Michael Craig on Oct 28, 2016
Dear Club Presidents and Secretaries,
I am forwarding a notice from the Rotary Club of Ottawa announcing the open period for Clubs across Canada to reserve a spot for a student sponsored by their Club to attend the annual Rotary Adventure in Citizenship (AIC) program. Many of you have received this directly and a fair number of Clubs participate in this program already, but I wanted to send a note to encourage all Clubs to consider applying for one of these spots and sending a student from your local high school to attend this conference.
My Club participated in this program last year and found it was an excellent, cost-effective Rotary program that was extremely well-received by students, parents and the school administration. The AIC program was something that was relevant, valuable and focused: It helped promote Rotary and further our relationship with the students, parents and school.
- AIC brings 200 high school students from across Canada together in Ottawa for a 4 day conference to gain a better understanding of our country and its democratic institutions. The conference program is produced to high standards and includes meetings with political leaders, senior officials and others. There are also significant cultural and social components to the program, and the opportunity to win scholarships. This year’s conference is Apr 30 – May 3, 2017.
- Students are selected and sponsored by individual Rotary Clubs, which are responsible for the program fee ($650) plus travel to/from the event (this was another $650, from Halifax, last year). Local transportation in Ottawa is handled by Rotarians there and students are billeted 2/house.
- The program’s obvious target market includes students involved in student government, Model UN, etc., but Clubs generally make the application process available to all students. The AIC program itself provides the structure for the applications, with a key element in the student application an essay/video on a specified topic, e.g. What does being a Canadian citizen mean to you?
- Two key success factors though are important to presenting and leveraging the AIC program in your local high school:
- AIC is a Major Award – This is a highly regarded student conference for a limited number of students selected from across the country and carries a value of +/- $1500. It is on par with a scholarship and needs to be positioned as something students aspire toward and compete for.
- Teacher/Guidance Counsellor Partner – Clubs need to partner with someone in the school to promote the opportunity and encourage students to apply for it. Simply posting a flyer in the office etc. is unlikely to by itself attract the pool of students you are seeking to apply.
Spots are awarded to Clubs on basically a first-come first-served basis, so please consider this soon within your Club and get your Club reservation application in a.s.a.p.
If you need any additional information or would like to discuss this further, please contact me by email or phone as provided below.
YIR,
Michael Craig – Rotary Club of Halifax Harbourside
c/o Bell Aliant, 200 - 5201 Duke St (Scotia Sq.), Halifax
