Youth Leaders on Board

The Youth Leaders on Board (YLOB) initiative on our Brantford Campus matches undergraduate students with non-profit boards in Brantford, Brant and surrounding communities who looking to bring in a youth perspective. This initiative is designed to enhance your leadership and governance knowledge, skills and experiences and provide you with a foundation for a lifelong interest in board development.

Students will participate in a one-day training workshop on the roles and responsibilities of board members, followed by a one-year placement as a student member on a board of directors.

The Youth Leaders on Board initiative gratefully acknowledges funding support from The Stephen Smith and Dorothy Woltz Foundation.

Application Process

Complete the below form to apply for the Youth Leaders on Board program. The application deadline is early Fall 2021 (date to be confirmed). 

All participants are required to attend a mandatory board training session. Participants are expected to submit an up-to-date resume (upon acceptance into the program) and attend a minimum of four to five board meetings in the fall and winter terms. Some organizations may not meet that frequently. The majority of placements will be in the non-profit/charitable sector and we will try our best to match your interest with the available board opportunities.

For additional information please contact Youth Leaders on Board Project Assistant Ian Camara at icamara@wlu.ca.

Youth Leaders on Board Application Form

Testimonials

“The YLOB program gave me a practical understanding of how non-profit boards function. This experience helped balance and compliment theory gained through the YLOB program along with lecture content. I will continue to seek out opportunities on various boards for years to come because I have learned the difference I can make in my community through the YLOB leadership opportunity!”

– fourth-year Leadership student

“This program gives students an opportunity to understand how decisions within these organizations are made, whom they benefit, and how conflicts amongst a group of people with various backgrounds are resolved.”

– fourth-year Criminology student

“Young adults do not get many opportunities to be exposed to the good work of community governance and the potential pitfalls that can be avoided. Youth Leaders on Board is a simple program which matches students to community agencies. The student learns community governance and the agency gets connected to young adults who are not typically represented on community boards. It is a win-win.”

– health-care organization

“Due to the nature of our board, having a student member has been very helpful. Her opinions and comments were very important as students are becoming the majority downtown and it is important that they have a voice.”

– business development organization