The mission of Youth Leadership Upson is to expose selected high school students exhibiting leadership traits to the business, political, and civic working of our community. The group is made up of Seniors, Juniors, and Sophomores that are residents of Upson County and who have demonstrated outstanding leadership skills in their school, church, and community. Each student is selected for a one-year school term and to successfully complete the program, a student must attend each scheduled class.
Youth Leadership Applications for 2026-2027 are now closed.
Students will be informed via email by August 26th if they have been selected. Selected individuals will meet on August 27th at 5:00pm with parents for a program overview.
PARTICIPANTS:
Any student that is a resident of Upson County and is a member of the Sophomore, Junior, or Senior class can participate in the Youth Leadership Upson Program. We encourage participation from all three classes.
A Home-Schooled or Private Schooled student may apply, but they must live in Upson County or be an Upson EMC Customer.
Applicants must complete an application, plus have the recommendations of two adults. Please send in the original Youth Leadership Application. The application must be handwritten by the applicant in blue or black ink. The application must be printed on one side. Please no double-sided completed applications.
When the judges are considering an applicant to recommend, they look for those who have:
- Demonstrated leadership qualities through their actions with service to school, church, civic or youth activities
- Demonstrated strong leadership potential
- Involvement in sports, after-school activities, clubs, or organizations
- Show initiative, enthusiasm, and communicate effectively
- Show a genuine interest in making a positive impact
- Integrity of character
- Interest in people / works well with others
- Potential for contributing to the program
- Eager to grow through new experiences
- Strong recommendations explaining the leadership behavior in the applicant. Recommendations that lack detail on leadership skills are not advised.
JUDGES THAT SELECT THE CANDIDATES FOR YOUTH LEADERSHIP UPSON ARE NOT LOCAL!
PURPOSE:
The purpose of Youth Leadership Upson shall be to identify emerging leaders among the youth of our community, and to provide for them an organized training program in the skills necessary to act in leadership capacities, to address issues of concern to them in their personal, academic, extracurricular and community involvement.
PROGRAMS:
Participants can expect to be trained by leadership development professionals, be involved in group discussions, participate in presentations, benefit from guest speakers and become actively involved in session topics. Participants will gain insight and knowledge of the Thomaston-Upson community.
SELECTION CRITERIA:
Participants in Youth Leadership Upson are selected after consideration of their recognized and potential leadership and the merit of their application and recommendations. Interviews are only necessary if the margin between two students is too narrow. At the conclusion of Youth Leadership Upson, participants will have developed a network of in-depth relationships with students from throughout the community and will have gained a deeper insight and broader knowledge of leadership skills and community issues.
ATTENDANCE POLICY:
Attendance at all programs is required. If an emergency arises, a written explanation must be submitted to the Chamber President/CEO. If more than one program is missed, the student will not graduate from the program.
HUBERT HANCOCK LEADERSHIP AWARD
Upson EMC and the Thomaston-Upson Chamber of Commerce HAVE A PARTNERSHIP THAT ENHANCES the Youth Leadership Upson Program, with the Hubert Hancock Leadership Award - Washington Youth Tour, the prize for the “most outstanding” of the group. The award, named locally to honor Hubert Hancock, longtime Upson EMC director and Chamber supporter, will give a selected student the opportunity to join others from Georgia for a two-day Georgia Tour, then venture on with students from across the nation on an incredible week in Washington, D.C. known as the Washington Youth Tour. The tour is a fast-paced once in a lifetime opportunity to see how America works. The student is selected by his/her peers, as well as attendance with every program, participation to the fullest degree and submission of all applications, references, and permission slips on time and accurately. Then, out of town judges conduct the interviews of the six finalists.
LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION:
Two letters of recommendation are required. Recommendations can be submitted on the Chamber website, turned in with the Youth Leadership Application, or sent via email directly from the writer to mruttinger@thomastongachamber.com. The recommendations submitted must be the same recommendation letters in this packet. Extra copies can be found on the Chamber Website. Recommendations that are not from the official Youth Leadership Form will not be considered.
Be sure to follow up with those you have asked to fill out your forms. Do not wait until the last minute to ask someone to do this for you.
These forms should be written by a school official (teacher, counselor, etc) who knows you and another adult who knows you or has worked with you in some organizational or supervisory capacity (minister, employer, non-profit etc). Family members cannot complete a form.
Online letters of recommendation will need to complete a recommendation form (handwritten or typed) and upload the final document. The recommendations submitted must be the same recommendation letters in this packet. Follow up to ensure that your recommendation forms are sent in. They are a crucial part of your application. Failure to return all parts of the application will mean that you will not be considered for this program.