By Jake Reed
As a Columbus student, you’ve probably wondered what college is like. Many pre-college programs can be costly— asking for thousands of dollars. Others want to lock up a month's worth of your summer calendar. Luckily, UF provides the best of both worlds in their Youth Leaders Conference (YLC).
Whether it’s because of the dozens of students Columbus sends each year or the Gators’ beloved football team, UF holds a spot in many students' hearts deep down. Priced at only $300, the weekend-long event became very popular for CCHS students who want to explore the university, develop leadership skills or even just gain a collegiate experience.
"My entire life, my dream school has been UF because my dad went there. When I received the email about this opportunity at the school of my dreams, I applied right away," said Columbus Junior John Allen.
This weekend, I am lucky enough to experience YLC firsthand, and I want to share my experience at the program in case you were interested in applying!
Friday
Following a 6-hour morning drive, we dropped off our bags into the packed lobby of Hotel Eleo, one of the nicest in Gainesville. It was only a quick run-in; we needed to check into the Grand Ballroom at the Reitz Union Student Center (Reitz) before 1PM.
Inside, there were 24 groups of around 10-12 kids each. This was where I’d meet Group 12– a mix of students from Jacksonville, Tampa, and Miami. Our Small Group Leaders Noah, Caroline, and Judd were super outgoing and engaging. You could tell they were good student models, but also knew how to make things fun. Between the UNO and laughing at their faces photoshopped onto aliens to fit the “Out of this World Leaders” theme, we were able to break the ice.
Next was the scavenger hunt; it had us running all across campus taking pictures with every quirky landmark, every pop up shop, and even a squirrel. The adventure ended at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, where we’d take a massive group photo before heading to the dining hall.
The meals change daily, and there are countless options to choose from. Considering how hungry I was, I went to where there was no line— a burger with a mozzarella stick and marinara sauce inside; it was called an Italian Burger. I finished the dinner with a few slices of pizza, chicken breast, and cookies for dessert. I think everyone took just as much advantage of the “all you can eat” component.
At this point, it was about 6:45, so we went back to the Reitz and our very own conference room. This is where we’d be participating in all the leadership workshops throughout the weekend, 2 or 3 engaging activities centered around 1 of 5 core leadership practices: Inspire a Shared Vision, Model the Way, Enable Others to Act, Encourage the Heart, and Challenge the Process. Most activities were social or problem solving exercises, and as much as I’d like to share, each person needs to go about it a different way— no spoilers!
We finished the night off with bowling, followed by Galactic Game Night. They had all sorts of games, desserts, and even a mechanical bull!
The shuttles brought us back to the hotel at around 11:15 to be in our rooms for curfew at midnight.
Saturday
Wake-up calls were at 7 AM with a very strict schedule ahead of us. As I groggily boarded the morning shuttle, my phone took an unfortunate fall— marking the start of my phone-free weekend. Luckily, I met Courtney and Bella, Director of Marketing and Director of Admin, respectively, who’d be documenting the entire trip on Instagram.
For most of us, breakfast at the Reitz was fairly light, loading our plates with only cinnamon rolls or yogurt. We had a field day ahead of us. The games consisted of penalty kicks, tug of war, dodgeball, a reaction game, and a balloon popping relay race. Group 12 wound up undefeated at the balloon popping relay and dodgeball, securing field day as a fan favorite weekend event amongst our group.
At around 12:30, we ate Jimmy John's and returned back to our conference room for Workshops #3 and #4. At this point, everyone in my group is already pretty close; none of the workshops are awkward, yet you still learn something new about someone every time.
The next event would be the Candlelight Ceremony, where SGLs and general aYLC leaders would share their own stories, some about finding themselves, some about overcoming challenges. It got deeper than I expected, some mentioning how they lost a loved one or just breaking down on stage in the middle of the speech.
It was really heartwarming to know that they felt comfortable sharing those stories with us and that they had such a great connection with UF and its community. That type of connection flowed into dinner, where even in the long line to return dishes, you felt included in the community.
The walk back to our final workshop was interrupted by the occasional stop to film the Small Group of the Year Video, a TikTok every group made to showcase YLC. The amount of times you’d see a badly executed “They need to learn face to face” trend be recreated was discouraging. The lack creativity was made up for by other groups though- one group even turned their video into a Lebron edit.
Kicking off the last night at around 8 PM, we played Connections, where you’d anonymously receive feedback from your group members and SGL on the lead]ership characteristics they think you exhibited.
We followed that event with the talent show— easily the funniest part of the entire weekend. There were some talents like playing the piano, dancing, magic, or photography. Then there were the other performances like bird calling, a failed human pyramid, an interrupted improv bit, or the singular push up. Then there was Elisheva. There really isn’t an explanation for what she did, you’d just have to look her up on TikTok.
The last time we’d be back in the ballroom was the Glow Party. I was a fan of any ballroom event because it allowed me to see everyone from any of the 24 groups.
Room checks and curfew that night were at 12:30. Everyone in my room was fast asleep right out of the showers because of how exhausted we were after that day.
Sunday
This would be our last day at the conference. With an extremely rushed morning routine, we dressed in suits to attend breakfast and the closing activities for the conference. They weren’t exactly workshops, but rather reflective exercises. We wrote a letter to someone who has influenced us as leaders and then spent our last few minutes in the conference room working with our resumes.
The closing ceremony was at 11 AM. We listened to each group’s chant, watched each group’s video, and celebrated the talent show winner, student of the year award, and small group of the year award.
Even though we’d only been there 2 and a half days, the recap made everything feel nostalgic. Although much of our time was spent with a random group and pushing us to stay off our phones, it really was an enjoyable experience. It was sad saying goodbye to your group members, but even more sad to say goodbye to the SGLs. For my group, UF was a consensus number 1 choice, so it was more like a "see you in two years!" The SGLs, sometimes upperclassmen, would be gone before we'd get there. They truly had an impact on my experience at UF, giving me what no tour guide could ever come close to. I feel as though there was not enough appreciation shared for the work they did to make us feel welcome.
"I really think seeing my SGLs be so open added to the experience. I'd recommend YLC to anyone that's looking to branch out and meet people," says Columbus Junior Robby Tompkins.
While the application process might scare you a little, it's worth it. Not only because they give you cool shirts or because it's a fun weekend getaway that your parents will support or even because you want to learn about the best school in the state. I can guarantee that you leave a better leader. It truly is a once in a lifetime opportunity. If you're considering YLC, apply.
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