Youth Advisory Board Recruiting Process

Dear D.A.R.E. State Presidents, Administrators, and Coordinators:

I want to inform you of the status of the Youth Advisory Board (YAB) member in your state, as well as to solicit your help in selecting a high school student from your state to serve on the D.A.R.E America Youth Advisory Board if there is a vacancy for the position in your state.

Students who are not graduating in the spring of 2010 are eligible to remain on the Board and will simply hold their places with the board in the coming school year unless the state or D.A.R.E. America has any concern. Otherwise, I encourage you to submit a name to me only if there is a vacancy in your state. I have listed states in need of a YAB member on the last page of this email.

Your selection of a new YAB member is needed by May 14, 2010.

Regional Director will then forward all new information to me. If you agree that the existing student in your state is still a strong representative, there is no need to respond.

The purpose of the YAB is to give D.A.R.E. graduates an opportunity to speak to issues impacting the worldwide D.A.R.E. program and to advise D.A.R.E. America and local D.A.R.E. programs, government and community leaders on drug and violence prevention strategies beneficial to our youth.

In addition to the above, the YAB is a working board, leading Peer PLUS Programs (after-school programs for youth in their communities where there is interest), engaging in letter writing and media response, serving on special committees and as role models and speakers at D.A.R.E. functions within their states.

As a brief update, the Youth Advisory Board attended a national conference in October 2009 at the DEA training facility on the Quantico Marine Base in the Washington, D.C. region. This was the tenth annual YAB Conference. It is very likely that the conference will again be held on the Quantico Marine Base, and this year we are looking at holding the conference in the fall of 2010. Dates are to be determined. New and returning YAB members should be advised of this.

Finally, interested graduating seniors are in the process of applying for the D.A.R.E. America Scholarship. You may see an application come across your desk; please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

While the selection process for a new YAB in your state is subject to your own established guidelines, the selection criteria for the D.A.R.E. America Youth Advisory Board should include the following:

1) Must be at least a freshman and no older than a sophomore in high school at the time of the selection (May 14, 2010), and be willing and available to serve on the Youth Advisory Board for a minimum of two years.

2) Must be a graduate of either the elementary or middle school D.A.R.E Programs, but graduates from both the elementary and middle school are highly preferred.

3) Must have a history of demonstrated academic achievement.

4) Must be articulate and comfortable with public speaking.

5) Must be representative of the diversity of your state population.

6) Must not be related to any current D.A.R.E. Officers or D.A.R.E. America personnel.

*Exceptions may be made, but these students are not eligible for the D.A.R.E. America Scholarship.

**It should also be noted that the Youth Advisory Board is now the only student group eligible for the D.A.R.E. America scholarship of $20,000. Each year, one or more members from the senior YAB pool will receive the scholarship. Because this is a wonderful opportunity, please keep that in mind when selecting a YAB member. Biographies, contact information, recommending officer’s name, and a photograph of new YAB members should be forwarded to your state’s Regional Director by May 14, 2009.  The Regional Directors will forward all information to me.

Unless there are any conflicts of interest or other issues identified right away, the student’s name forwarded to us will be your Youth Advisory Board member, there are no further selections through D.A.R.E. America.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me on 310-459-0326 or via e-mail at jill.roberts@dare.org.

Thank you very much for your help! The Youth Advisory Board is so very important to D.A.R.E., as well as to all of the youth throughout the country.

States which need to replace current YAB member due to graduation or missing:

AR CO CT DE FL IA ID IN KS KY MA MN MT NJ NV OK PA RI UT WA WV WY

Sincerely, Jill L. Roberts Director, D.A.R.E. P.L.U.S and Youth Advisory Board.

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