Welcome
Rotary Youth Program of Enrichment - RYPEN
The Concept
RYPEN has as its principal aim, to communicate to young people taking part in the program, a series of ideas, problems and social experiences which will assist them in forming their own values and moral standards and allow them to broaden their horizons culturally, socially and academically. Nothing is forced upon the young people - they are free to discuss and interpret what they experience and above all, they are not patronised by the Rotarians or Leaders who are involved in running the seminar.
The RYPEN seminar will be conducted by a Rotarian experienced in youth work and leadership camps and will be assisted by a team of youth leaders (female/male) who are or have been involved in other Youth Training Programs (ie. Rotaract, RYLA, Youth Work). The Kinglake Forest Adventures Camp provides very good facilities for students and leaders and has dormitory style sleeping quarters for female/male attendees.
RYPEN in our District is designed to provide an enriching program for young people in the age groups covered by Years 9 & 10. It is centered on a weekend residential seminar where the young people are involved in an intense learning and social experience. The program is challenging to young people as it is focused on activities that will increase their self-esteem and leadership skills as well as allowing opportunities for them to think about understanding themselves and how they relate to others. Those attending should have a basic level of physical fitness, as parts of the program that the participants will become involved in, will include outdoor sessions that require them to work as a group, as well as being individually challenged.
RYPEN in our District is designed to provide an enriching program for young people in the age groups covered by Years 9 & 10. It is centered on a weekend residential seminar where the young people are involved in an intense learning and social experience. The program is challenging to young people as it is focused on activities that will increase their self-esteem and leadership skills as well as allowing opportunities for them to think about understanding themselves and how they relate to others. Those attending should have a basic level of physical fitness, as parts of the program that the participants will become involved in, will include outdoor sessions that require them to work as a group, as well as being individually challenged.
To facilitate the learning at a RYPEN seminar, a balance is struck between work and play, between formal learning situations and social activities. Everything done at the seminar is closely planned to contribute, in a positive way, to the total experience.
A very important part of the concept is that those chosen to participate should be prepared to strive for and attempt all activities that will be offered to them at the seminar. To accept the offer to participate in the seminar is the commencement of the positive nature of the seminar. RYPEN seeks to help those who, with guidance and encouragement, can achieve their latent potential. Rotary is striving to build on the qualities that the young people selected for the seminar have already shown, i.e. perseverance, steadfastness, honesty and decency in order that they can benefit from this experience.
The job of selecting the seminar participants is up to each Secondary College invited to participate and a Rotary Club then sponsors those selected. The College's Student Welfare Teacher/Year 9 & 10 Coordinator's should be able to ensure that the student/s selected are within the guidelines and will benefit from the experience. The seminar is restricted to 40 students on a first come basis. Application forms are available from the District Committee or from this website. (See Menu Box)
The basic philosophy of RYPEN is that stimulus and individual enrichment, comes from the group ethos developed by the seminar team, which causes a sense of pride and unity to be developed in the participants, thus achieving the aims of the program.
The job of selecting the seminar participants is up to each Secondary College invited to participate and a Rotary Club then sponsors those selected. The College's Student Welfare Teacher/Year 9 & 10 Coordinator's should be able to ensure that the student/s selected are within the guidelines and will benefit from the experience. The seminar is restricted to 40 students on a first come basis. Application forms are available from the District Committee or from this website. (See Menu Box)
The basic philosophy of RYPEN is that stimulus and individual enrichment, comes from the group ethos developed by the seminar team, which causes a sense of pride and unity to be developed in the participants, thus achieving the aims of the program.
Chair: District RYPEN Program
District RYPEN Seminar - 2024
The Annual RYPEN Seminar has always been an unqualified success. Through their participation, our leaders have observed many young people grow in so many areas of life.
Many of the attendees have gained positive insight into themselves, which has improved their rationale for good decision making in the future. Through their participation, they were also able to demonstrate team membership positivity by being involved in a range of challenging activities. Importantly, they had a fun experience as their confidence grew in the group setting.
We are excited to be partnering with our neighbours in 9800 to run an "interdistrict" RYPEN instead of just a 9790 RYPEN this year! 9800 run a large and successful RYPEN program, and our aim is to support our program in returning to full strength by partnering with them for their guidance and support. We are hoping to send a number of students from our district to participate, and build connections across a wider area and increase diversity of experiences for participants. This is a great chance for students in the district, especially those in regional/rural areas who may not typically receive these opportunities. There are places for up to 20 students, and we are hoping to be able to fill as many of them as we can.
Run Dates: October 25-27 2024
Location: Axedale, Victoria
Applications Close Date: October 9 2024
Contact: Suzanne Zammit - rypen@rotarydistrict9800.org.au