It has been my privilege during the past few weeks to attend a number of meeting of one of the three Interact Cubs sponsored by my Rotary Club. It is a great experience to listen to and talk with these intelligent, motivated and service oriented young people. I truly do not understand why Rotarians are not lining up at the door to do the same.
My grand-daughter is a high school senior at another school where she is also a cheerleader, yes she is perfect. I love being around her and all of her adorably cute friends. I also love the hugs and attention these teenage girls lavish on an old man like me; they keep you young.
At the conclusion of those Interact meetings it seems natural for all those young girls to say thank you for attending with a hug for many of the Rotarians, but many years of experience tell me to avoid the physical interaction. It is not so much about being standoffish or shy; it is also all about common sense.
So here is my cautionary note: be careful when hanging out with teenagers. Their brains are still forming and they are going through emotional trauma, just because they are teenagers. I am reminded of a Rotarian who suggested to a seventeen year old RYLA participant that she needed return to her dorm room and put on some clothing that was a little less revealing. Probably good counsel on his part, but she didn’t feel that les revealing was something she wanted to do. The young lady in question made, what I assume was, unfounded accusations regarding the Rotarian. The end result was a smugly satisfied teenage girl, an embarrassed gentleman who resigned from Rotary and an episode of chaos and discontent for most of the people involved.
A lot of attention is paid to youth protection in every organization that deals with children and Rotary is a part of that effort. My cautionary note is for all Rotarians to be cautious in protecting themselves from wrongful accusations whether they are malicious or simply a misunderstanding. Though I was only a peripheral witness to the Rotarian who gave up his membership the incident continues to bother me.
I am serving on the Youth Protection Committee in our District (6650) for the 4th year. Although we do the training with all youth (RYE In-bound & oout-bound, RYLA, Interact, etc.) we also train advisors, club YE contacts, YE host parents, and present at a general meeting of the Rotarians in the District. I agree that uintentional comments and/or actions can be misinterpreted by teens, and that this can lead to accusations aganst an adult (male or female) Rotarian. The job of the Yout Protection Committee is to handle the matter DISCREETLY and professionally and reach a consensus about the matter and then recommend appropriate action. It saddens me that a good Rotrian left his/her club because of the drama created in the instance you describe. It sounds like it was made into a :”public” issue and not handled discreetly.
Steve,
I wholeheartedly agree that we who work with young people need to be cautious in protecting ourselves and Rotary, but we should go beyond just being cautious.
I have participated in six Young RYLA conferences and therefore fully understand the potential for bringing discredit upon ourselves or Rotary. In District 5450 we have a stringent program of conducting background checks for anyone who will be working with youth. In addition, we conduct training classes each year before RYLA conferences. The training is crucial since just publishing guidelines does not cover the many scenarios that occur in real life.
We who are associated with RYLA realize that just one bad incident could completely discredit RYLA and bring about it’s demise.
Thanks for you input and desire to raise awareness of this very critical topic.
Have always respected and learned from listening to Steve. Thanks for sharing.