The Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership Foundation (HOBY) is a nonprofit organization known for providing youth leadership programs across the country and overseas. This is a program presented to sophomores on campus every year. For 2024, applications opened Nov. 12 and interviews were held on Monday in the MPR room. HOBY was chosen by West Covina High School because of its message and longing to improve the lives of young people through other similar minds and represent their own community and school district.
Founded in 1958 by actor Hugh O’Brian, the HOBY program was created to gather sophomores with a passion for their community, leadership skills, and those who take initiative to make a positive impact. According to their website, hoby.org, the foundation believes in volunteerism as well as encouraging entrepreneurship among a diverse group of students.
This program helps to establish an all inclusive concept of being aware of social problems. The organization seeks out a diverse crowd with different backgrounds to see what kind of voice they can give their community.
Those who are able to succeed in the program are awarded the HOBY award. This award is granted to two sophomores who have been nominated by fellow teachers or faculty that feel like those students can make a difference and become a role model for the community.
Since 1986, sophomores on campus have had the opportunity to be granted with the HOBY award. Those who are interested in receiving the award, submit a Google Form with a short essay about a challenge or accomplishment regarding their experience with becoming a leader. These responses will be reviewed and judged based on their expertise of being a leader. The last day to apply for the award this year was Dec. 1. The qualified applicants then get scheduled to do an in person interview.
Representatives take part in a national in-person seminar that the program holds in 2025 around June off campus. As of now the location of the seminar is to be determined. These seminars revolve around doing workshops that promote team collaboration and engagement among the students. The leadership seminars are usually 3-4 days and take place during the spring or summer.
In these seminars, students get to interact with peers from different backgrounds to recognize each other’s skills and work as a group. Not only does the seminars provide collaborative work, but also do service hours for the community, this organization serves as the ones who honor the Presidential Volunteer Service award to the most outstanding contributors.
Senior Mya Salama, who is the Associated Student Body (ASB) Secretary of Spirit, learned about HOBY through her sister Summer Salama, who qualified for the award in 2020. After submitting an essay in her online application, she was interviewed by the counselors.
Salama then attended the in-person seminar at the California State Polytechnic University in Pomona, and won the president’s award for community service through HOBY.
“It was an amazing experience, because I learned so much about myself, and I learned that, like, it’s okay not knowing what you want to do, but knowing that you want to make a difference is, where it really matters,” said Salama.
With over 500,000 award winners around the world, HOBY’s alumni offer new opportunities such as organizing new projects and qualifying for scholarships. These moments are said to advance personal growth, connections, and being a caretaker for one’s community.
