Decalibron Summit Program

The Decalibron Summit Program is a four-year service and leadership program run by Colorado Young Leaders (CYL), a Denver-area youth leadership organization, for high school students. The program is named after the Decalibron Loop, a route over four 14,000-foot peaks near Fairplay, Colorado, and CYL hikes the loop every September. Students work through one metaphorical summit per year of high school: Mt. Democrat, Mt. Cameron, Mt. Lincoln, and Mt. Bross. In the first year, students explore by serving in at least three CYL Service Adventures across three different cause areas. In the second year, they complete three or more service projects within a single cause area. In the third year, they dig into the root causes of their chosen issue and line up a community partner. In the final year, they carry out a Legacy Project of their own design, which could be an internship, a school program, or a service event. CYL recommends about 50 service hours for each summit. CYL partners with more than 45 nonprofit organizations, and students can track their service hours through the CYL student portal.

Open to high school students. The Summit Program is application-based: students must first register with Colorado Young Leaders, then apply for the Summit Program. Each year's summit has checkpoints (for example, 3+ Service Adventures in the first year), and about 50 service hours per summit are recommended.