Welcome to the Allied Youth Program (A.Y.)!
Much of the focus of the AY program can be found in your own communities. The program encourages youth to look to their own communities to find projects which may help their friends or families, as their motto suggests. Posts, which is the name given to local groups of AY members, usually get involved in local matters and projects, learning to be leaders close to home. These types of projects and activities are also useful for many young members' academics, since many of them qualify as volunteer hours which they may use towards their Career Choices programs in high school.
These projects might include events such as:
• Is a program run by youth for youth!
• Is a chance for youth achievement to be recognized!
• Has opportunities to travel all across Canada, or to stay right at home and learn how to have fun where you are!
• Is a way to become a leader by learning, planning and growing the way YOU want to (& Have Fun Doing It!)
To group that is responsible for assisting local groups, and to supervising the provincial A.Y. program is the The Advisory Committee. This is a group of adult volunteers who are focused on supporting and building the AY program in our province. During the year, we assist the youth and Provincial Executive in organizing the Provincial events of the program such as: Kick-Off Weekend, travel to International Conference, Provincial Conference and Leadership Camp. The Provincial Executive is a group of 7-8 youth who are elected by their peers at their Provincial Conference which takes place over Easter Vacation each year. While this can be time-consuming, we see these youth as strong leaders for the future and we want to see them have a chance to develop their skills and interest in the world around them.
In each A.Y. post there is one or multiple adult volunteer – designated as Post Advisor(s). They work with the youth to develop their leadership skills and sense of responsibility. Should you have any initial concerns or questions about the A.Y. program, please feel free to contact your child's Post Advisor.
As the parent of an A.Y. member or a future A.Y. member, we ask you to keep in mind that running an AY Post can be challenging and very time consuming. It you would like to be of great assistance, and to help benefit to your child, the local Post, and the program province-wide, you can do so by offering to help out with some Post activities throughout the year. They are always recruiting and looking for help throughout the year!
If you are interested, you can get in touch with your child's Post Advisor to inquire about what you can do to help. It may be as simple as supervising a dance, or driving some youth members to an event, or as intensive as escorting a group of youth to a Provincial or Regional Event as a chaperone. The support that parents provide helps to alleviate some of the stress from the Post Advisor, and assists in making the Post more successful and, most importantly, for your child to enjoy their Allied Youth experience to its full potential.
A.Y. is all about encouraging the youth to make their own decisions, to take on the planning and organizing of the events and activities for themselves, and to be responsible for seeing their plans through to success, with minimal adult help. If you think this program would be of benefit to your child(ren) and want to find out more, please contact:
Ellen Chalker - Provincial Coordinator
echalker@gov.nl.ca
(709) 729 - 0725