The Center for Leadership is invested in the development of our youth in the local community. Every summer Elon University partners with Alamance Chamber of Commerce to host the Alamance Youth Leadership Academy summer institute. Alamance Youth Leadership Academy (AYLA) is a middle school leadership program dedicated to empowering youth through the connections of civic engagement and leadership development. AYLA currently serves over 100 7th and 8th graders from 6 different middle schools in Alamance County. This program empowers youth with the skills necessary to formulate and execute a campus improvement plan at their school, and it is at Elon that those skills are developed.
Alamance Youth Leadership kicks off its program with a three and a half day leadership institute held at Elon University. During this time 60 plus rising 7th graders learn about team building, effective communication, presenting skills, problem solving, and develop core leadership skills that help them identify and plan three possible improvement plans for their school. Elon selects twelve Elon students as student facilitators and one Elon student as the summer institute coordinator to guide these students through this transforming experience. A pair of facilitators work with each school to guide their thinking through the numerous challenges faced during the institute.