300th Anniversary Update: Manchester RYC Will Not Celebrate Anniversary.
The Regional Youth Conference (RYC) 2008 won't be held at Manchester (Ind.) College in April 2008 and is not being planned as a celebration of the 300 years of history of the Church of the Brethren. The theme will not be, “Cherishing the Tradition: The Church of the Brethren, 300 Years of Faithfulness,” with Mark 12:30-31 as the focus scripture.
A line-up of Brethren musicians and story tellers will not lead the conference. Musicians will not include Michael Stern, Andy and Terry Murray, or Peg Lehman. Jim Lehman will not be the story teller. Other stories will not be brought by people involved in current church programs, videos of Brethren ministries, or people representing Brethren from history. The weekend will not include worship experiences or concerts.
Students in grades 6 through 12 are not invited to register or attend; neither are adult advisors or youth volunteers. Other interested adults are not invited to attend concerts or story telling times. Registration packets will not be available in January.
Showing posts with label RYC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label RYC. Show all posts
Thursday, January 03, 2008
Monday, April 18, 2005
RYC
New Resources Created in Effort to Save Regional Youth Conference
The recent Regional Youth Conference (RYC) held at Manchester College continued a downward participation spiral, having only 85 youth attend. Of those, most were from Indiana with only 6 youth traveling from the adjacent Illinois/Wisconsin district.
Manchester College (Ind.) is making new resources available as part of its effort to save Regional Youth Conference (RYC). The plan is for Church of the Brethren pastors and church employees, district employees, and employees of Annual Conference agencies, and affiliated agencies and institutions, and their youth. A video addressing questions about the conference, a power point presentation on the history of the conference, information about scholarships, and information about all of the Brethren colleges, are being made available free of charge. Manchester College has also worked with the Midwest districts, agencies, and Ministers' Association to create an advisory panel for the conference and is training advocates to promote the conference in districts.
The Regional Youth Conference is in a "death spiral," a downward cyclical phenomenon caused by decreased attendance and the reduction of the length of the event to two days. In districts that have more than 75 percent participation among eligible youth, the scholarship ratio is such that the conference should be able to survive, RYC reported. In districts where there is less than 75 percent participation, the scholarship ratio is such that, left unchecked, the conference could cease to exist within several years.
Revitalization of RYC will come through increased attendance. Manchester College has reinstated a requirement of 75 percent participation among eligible youth in each of the Midwest districts, for districts to continue in the conference. If a district does not have commitments from its congregations by Aug. 31, 2006, to meet that goal, all youth in the district will be ineligible for the regional conference on Jan. 1, 2007. The college states that the 75 percent requirement was part of the RYC Plan when it began in the 1950s, but "fell by the wayside" in the early 1980s. "The conference must regain an appropriate attendance in order to continue."
Manchester College has begun training advocates to work in each district to promote the conference with congregations and church youth. The advocates will use the new video to help rebuild participation in the conference. A first group of seven advocates was trained on March 7-8. As of March 17, 12 of the Midwestern districts had named advocates. More advocate trainings will be held in late spring.
An April 18 follow-up meeting between Manchester College and the Council of District Executives will be held in Richmond, Ind. It was requested by the district executives and will include members of Manchester’s board and staff, executives of the Annual Conference agencies, representatives of Annual Conference, and members of COBCOA. This summer RYC will be a major topic of discussion at Annual Conference in Peoria, Ill.
To order the video in DVD or VHS format, or to receive any other resource mentioned above, call 800-555-1505 ext. 374 or e-mail cobyouth@brethren.org.
The recent Regional Youth Conference (RYC) held at Manchester College continued a downward participation spiral, having only 85 youth attend. Of those, most were from Indiana with only 6 youth traveling from the adjacent Illinois/Wisconsin district.
Manchester College (Ind.) is making new resources available as part of its effort to save Regional Youth Conference (RYC). The plan is for Church of the Brethren pastors and church employees, district employees, and employees of Annual Conference agencies, and affiliated agencies and institutions, and their youth. A video addressing questions about the conference, a power point presentation on the history of the conference, information about scholarships, and information about all of the Brethren colleges, are being made available free of charge. Manchester College has also worked with the Midwest districts, agencies, and Ministers' Association to create an advisory panel for the conference and is training advocates to promote the conference in districts.
The Regional Youth Conference is in a "death spiral," a downward cyclical phenomenon caused by decreased attendance and the reduction of the length of the event to two days. In districts that have more than 75 percent participation among eligible youth, the scholarship ratio is such that the conference should be able to survive, RYC reported. In districts where there is less than 75 percent participation, the scholarship ratio is such that, left unchecked, the conference could cease to exist within several years.
Revitalization of RYC will come through increased attendance. Manchester College has reinstated a requirement of 75 percent participation among eligible youth in each of the Midwest districts, for districts to continue in the conference. If a district does not have commitments from its congregations by Aug. 31, 2006, to meet that goal, all youth in the district will be ineligible for the regional conference on Jan. 1, 2007. The college states that the 75 percent requirement was part of the RYC Plan when it began in the 1950s, but "fell by the wayside" in the early 1980s. "The conference must regain an appropriate attendance in order to continue."
Manchester College has begun training advocates to work in each district to promote the conference with congregations and church youth. The advocates will use the new video to help rebuild participation in the conference. A first group of seven advocates was trained on March 7-8. As of March 17, 12 of the Midwestern districts had named advocates. More advocate trainings will be held in late spring.
An April 18 follow-up meeting between Manchester College and the Council of District Executives will be held in Richmond, Ind. It was requested by the district executives and will include members of Manchester’s board and staff, executives of the Annual Conference agencies, representatives of Annual Conference, and members of COBCOA. This summer RYC will be a major topic of discussion at Annual Conference in Peoria, Ill.
To order the video in DVD or VHS format, or to receive any other resource mentioned above, call 800-555-1505 ext. 374 or e-mail cobyouth@brethren.org.
Saturday, June 15, 2002
Friday, June 14, 2002
RYC News:
Reports of the death of a RYC participant are "unfounded", according to the national Youth and Young Adult Office.
Perhaps there has been confusion between the activities at the Midwest Regional Youth Conference held at Manchester College and the marshmallow game known as "Chubby Bunny". Chubby Bunny is a dangerous activity and, in this day and age, you will scarcely find it employed at Brethren Camp talent shows. See: "The Chubby Bunny Game" May Be Hazardous To Your Patients' Lives
While the activity at RYC involved marshmallows (check your June 2002 issue of Messenger magazine), it also involved the recitation of Old Testament city names and so it had to be perfectly harmless.
And besides, we're sure that the youth attending RYC all signed waivers beforehand.
Reports of the death of a RYC participant are "unfounded", according to the national Youth and Young Adult Office.
Perhaps there has been confusion between the activities at the Midwest Regional Youth Conference held at Manchester College and the marshmallow game known as "Chubby Bunny". Chubby Bunny is a dangerous activity and, in this day and age, you will scarcely find it employed at Brethren Camp talent shows. See: "The Chubby Bunny Game" May Be Hazardous To Your Patients' Lives
While the activity at RYC involved marshmallows (check your June 2002 issue of Messenger magazine), it also involved the recitation of Old Testament city names and so it had to be perfectly harmless.
And besides, we're sure that the youth attending RYC all signed waivers beforehand.
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