<p>Hey guys, CYLC alumni here. I’ve been to two events: NYLSC (National Youth Leadership State Conference) and PYIC (Presidential Youth Inaugural Conference). Here’s the breakdown.</p>
<p>NYLSC was a leadership conference at the state level, as one can deduce from its name. About 125 to 150 kids stayed in a hotel in Miami. For four days, we embarked on a variety of leadership activities, using various staff members as mentors. I can’t speak for the qualifications of the staff members, but I did have a lot of fun, and I got to know them very well. I don’t remember what the tuition was, but it was pretty friggin’ high. Regardless, I did learn quite a bit about leadership and met some cool kids, one or two of whom I still talk to. Meals were fine, and the event was organized really well. NYLSC is for kids in 8th and 9th grade; I went in the spring of my 8th grade year.</p>
<p>PYIC involved me seeing Barack Obama’s inauguration. Honestly, for the $2,000+ tuition, that was worth it. However, the organization was completely chaotic. About 15,000 kids were taken from grades 6 through 12 (as well as many university students), and trying to bus everybody around DC and Maryland was a bit ridiculous. I remember getting back to the hotel at 1 and 2 in the morning on consecutive nights, and I also remember a lack of food provided by CYLC. Instead of being jam-packed with activities, most of our time was spent on the bus taking the hour ride from our hotel to the University of Maryland (thankfully, we were very close to DC). Because of this, I didn’t get to know the staff members very well; they were too busy trying to organize things.</p>
<p>We were told that we were going to get to interact with congressmen and other high-standing individuals. I got to meet Al Gore at a VIP lunch (it was a consolation prize for entering a video contest), and we got to see a few individuals give speeches (Gore, Colin Powell, Doris Kearns, Desmond Tutu, and Lisa Ling, to name the majority), but there was no Congressional interaction. I did get to do some cool stuff like see Capitol Steps and The Reduced Shakespeare company.</p>
<p>Inauguration day was amazing because we had no supervision. Yes, I’m aware that this can be dangerous to many people, but I was with a group of about a dozen kids, and we were allowed to walk around DC on this historic day without having to worry about staying with a large group! We were provided with a map to get to a specific meeting place (Nationals Ballpark, which was rented out for PYIC on this day) and a time to be there. My friends and I had no problem making it there with plenty of time to spare. And yes, I got to see Barack Obama inaugurated. Amazing.</p>
<p>Now, the saddest part of this entire trip might be the fact that I met some of my best friends there, but what are the chances that I’ll ever get to see them again? I talk to a few kids from PYIC daily, and I feel closer to them than I do to many people that I know from school.</p>
<p>You know, overall, I don’t see these trips as a rip-off. You have to have reasonable expectations about why you want to go. I went to these trips to become a leader (and to see a very historic event). My goal wasn’t to pad my college application. And remember, CYLC is not for everybody. Would you trust your child (or yourself, if you’re a teenager) walking around DC without supervision on inauguration day?</p>