As Coastal Encinitas Rotary begins a new year, Youth Committee Chair Marti is excited about expanding opportunities for local students while continuing several programs that have already made a lasting impact in the community.
One of the committee’s biggest opportunities this year comes through a District Matching Grant that will allow the club to send 12 students to the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) camp in Idyllwild in April 2027.
“This is a wonderful opportunity,” Marti explains. “Because we are limited to sending six students from San Dieguito Academy, we now have the chance to build relationships with smaller private high schools in our area and introduce more students to this life-changing program.”
Building those new school relationships is one of the committee’s primary goals for the coming year. In addition, the committee plans to continue supporting San Dieguito Academy’s Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) program through college tours and is exploring opportunities to establish local scholarships for graduating seniors.
Marti believes several of the club’s youth initiatives have already demonstrated their value to students.
“Our support of RYLA, the AVID program, and the MiraCosta College Technology Career Institute has been life-changing for many local students,” she says. “We are also always looking for opportunities to support students at the elementary and junior high school levels.”
The committee welcomes ideas from both club members and the community about new ways to enrich the lives of young people.
Member involvement remains an important part of the program’s success. Marti encourages Rotarians to participate in student interviews for RYLA or simply attend the send-off events before students begin their leadership experience.
“Those are easy and meaningful ways to become involved,” she says.
One of the most rewarding aspects of the Youth Committee’s work is seeing students return to share their experiences.
“It is wonderful when students come back to our meetings and tell us how these programs have positively changed them,” Marti says. “Those stories remind us why these opportunities matter.”
Looking ahead, Marti hopes the committee can successfully expand participation beyond its traditional school partnerships.
“A successful year would include sending our additional six RYLA students from more than one local school and, hopefully, providing a scholarship to a graduating local high school senior,” she says.
With a focus on leadership development, educational opportunity, and community engagement, the Youth Committee continues to invest in the next generation of leaders throughout North County.