Legislators' School for Youth Leadership Development (LSYLD) targets students in grades eight through eleven who display potential leadership qualities. LSYLD is a summer residential program, funded by the North Carolina General Assembly beginning in 1985. The Office for Rural Education (ORE) operates this program on the campus of Western Carolina University (WCU) in Cullowhee. East Carolina University operates a companion LSYLD program.

Students who attend LSYLD are nominated by the schools in the ORE service area (49 western most counties), and are selected by a random process. Introductory program information and forms are mailed to schools in January. The legislation for the program funding mandates that the selection ratio is three rural participants for each urban participant, thus allowing rural students enrichment opportunities they would not ordinarily be able to receive.

Eligibile candidates for the program should show good reasoning and problem solving abilities, and who could benefit from activities that strengthen these skills. Participants must be rising eight-through-eleventh graders; they should demonstrate positive leadership potential; these candidates should display the need, interest, and ability to acquire skills for increasing personal accomplishment, responsible citizenship, interpersonal skills, and academic achievements; and students must meet certain criteria to attend - if they are currently being served by the State Department of Public Instruction's gifted and talented program or if they have attended the Legislators' School previously, they are NOT eligible to attend.

John W. Gardiner, in an address to the National Association of Community Leadership Organizations stated, "If we can create vital new leadership in our communities, we shall strengthen our society immeasurably." That one statement sums up the intent of the North Carolina General Assembly when it enacted the legislation which created the Legislators' School for Youth Leadership Development (LSYLD) in 1985.

Designing the program to meet the requirements of that mandate also provides the opportunity and challenge to develop the program so that it provides a unique experience in personal growth for the youth involved. We believe that having active experiences as both community leaders and members provides the opportunity for students to develop the special skills critical to both roles. Warren Bennis at the Annual Leadership Conference at the Center for Creative Leadership in July of 1987 commented on leadership training for youth. His comments describe the heart of our program:

Leaders, like anyone else, are the sum of all their experiences. But unlike others, they amount to more than the sum, because they make more of their experiences.

We are committed to developing a program design that will nurture the personal growth of all participants, motivating and enabling them to use their abilities to the fullest now and in the future. If we achieve that goal, we will have a pool of new leaders that is so badly needed at all levels.

Participants will be involved in an exciting adventure that will be shared with other students from the 49 western-most counties of North Carolina. In addition to days packed with new challenges, students will make new friends and discover many new things about themselves.

The program is designed to help one become all that he or she can be. Participants have already demonstrated that they have potential to become leaders in their schools and communities. All of the program activities are designed to help you learn new skills, stretch to do more than you think you can do, learn more about yourself, broaden your "vision" of the world, and have fun!