The Points of Light Youth Leadership Institute (PLYLI) is a state of the art training program designed to teach leadership and community service skills to high school age students. The program was originally created by Prudential Financial and developed with funding from the Prudential Foundation. In 2004, the program was officially transferred to the Points of Light Foundation and renamed the Points of Light Youth Leadership Institute. Youth service professionals who have been certified as trainers for the program are currently conducting the PLYLI in over forty states across the United States.

There are three major program elements to The Points of Light Youth Leadership Institute. They include teaching the curriculum, planning and implementing the community service project, and conducting a graduation ceremony. In addition to the program elements, there are also supporting activities that can assist local trainers in having a successful program.

Curriculum

The Points of Light Youth Leadership Institute employs a specially designed curriculum developed by the Center for Creative Leadership, one of the world's foremost authorities on leadership training. It incorporates the latest methodology for teaching key leadership skills such as goal setting, team building, project planning, and decision making while emphasizing the importance and means of applying these skills to community service endeavors. The training program consists of approximately thirty hours of classroom instruction, plus hands-on field exercises and a community service project.

Service

The service project is a unique part of the programming that distinguishes it from similar leadership training programs. The purpose of the service project is to give participants an opportunity to utilize what they have learned from the training curriculum, gain confidence in their abilities to create, develop, and implement a service project, and act upon their social concerns expressed during training. The project can be completed in a single day or over a period of time.

Graduation

The graduation ceremony is an essential element of the program. It is an opportunity for the young people to celebrate their accomplishments and a way for the community to recognize their commitment. The graduation ceremony can be held on the same day as the service project or done as a separate event.

As a certified trainer, I assist with the development and the implementation of the program in my area. Many of the youth in my parish have participated in the program and benefited from the training experience as a tool to meet the changing needs in our local community. Our parish youth have taken ownership of the program and now help facilitate the planning, implementation, and the evaluation of community service projects. They have taken the skills learned in the program to assist with the organization of parish ministries. The Points of Light Youth Leadership Institute program is more than a leadership program for our youth—it has become a way of life in our parish and local communities.

(Portions reprinted with permission of the Points of Light Youth Leadership Institute.)