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Inaugural Youth 'Scam' Controversy Continues

January 28, 2009 RSS Feed Print

Controversy continues to heat up around the Inaugural program for students that some are calling a scam. As parents press for reimbursements and apologies, the organizers are starting to respond by offering refunds and other remedies.

The Presidential Youth Inaugural Conference, held over President Obama's Inauguration, collected up to $2,900 from thousands of high school and college students for four days of lectures and events, some with high-profile politicians such as Colin Powell and Al Gore. But students say they were misled into thinking they would have tickets to the swearing-in and official Inaugural Ball.

In an August letter sent to attendees, the conference organizers said, "On the Mall, you will watch the new President take the oath of office and listen as he addresses the nation. You will then have an opportunity to view the inaugural parade as the new President, Vice President and their families make their way down Pennsylvania Avenue from the U.S. Capitol Building to the White House."

But many participants said they missed both the swearing-in and parade because of the crowds and difficulty getting downtown. As for the ball, the conference hosted an "unofficial" ball, which means neither President Obama nor Beyonce were there, at the National Air and Space Museum.

“I told everyone I would be going to the inauguration and the inaugural ball,” Caitlin Armstrong, an 18-year-old sophomore at Auburn University, said last week. She was disappointed to discover that neither was true. Some of the students have called the event a scam and are taking their complaints to Facebook and other social networking sites, as well as a potential class action lawsuit.

The organizers behind the event, the Congressional Youth Leadership Council, released a statement over the weekend acknowledging students' discontent. They wrote that while they believed most participants has a "positive and life-changing experience," transportation and access difficulties caused problems for others. In addition to apologizing, they said they are investigating students' and parents' concerns and have started to provide refunds.

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There were alot of problems throughout the conference, including my getting lost at the mall and holding up the buses(my apologies), but it was an amazing experience. We got to see Powell, Gore, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Desmond Tutu(my personal favorite), and many other key figures. As someone whose family had to work double time and scrape to get to go, i was very appreciative of the effort made by the program, and the truly unique experience all of us recieved. If ya'll are serious about disliking it, then let me ask you this. Of the millions of people who attended D.C. that year, can you say ours was the worst? Be thankful for the experience. Bad things happen, plans do not always work out as they should.

of 7:05PM January 06, 2011

Although my comment may come a year too late, I was a fortunate one who had an AMAZING time at PYIC. So apologies to all of you that had problems with your children, but it was an experience that was whatever you made out of it. I got to meet Al Gore, amongst other famous celebrities, got into the inauguration area, and made life long friends. So essentially this was the best experience I have had, and don't attribute all problems to the organization. It was the experience of a lifetime.

Terese of MI 12:34PM February 12, 2010

My son attended the inaugural conference and yes he had disappointments, but overall he feels honored and privileged to have had the opportunity to attend a historic event. It is not the organizers fault that so many others also wanted to attend. i doubt anyone could have organized a small group any better than they managed such a huge group of young people. People who had not participated in any way in electing Obama could not attend an official ball. That perk was only given to people who worked for years on his campaign. That seems fair. Having an opportunity to be in the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum for an inaugural ball is a tremendous opportunity for young people. Sadly, it was crowded. But so was every other ball in D.C. that night. We should be thankful for the opportunities presented and glad the organizers are giving refunds. They will likely never again experience organizing an event in D.C. at a time when millions of others are converging there to see the same thing. Let's give them a bit of a break!

p kahn of NM 5:20PM October 16, 2009

Inaugural Youth 'Scam' Controversy Continues

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