Kiwanis International is a global organization of volunteers dedicated to changing the world, one child and one community at a time. Kiwanis and its youth-oriented Service Leadership Programs serve communities in more than 80 countries and geographic areas. Founded in 1915 in Detroit, Michigan, Kiwanis International now comprises 600,000 members — men, women, boys, and girls — worldwide. The Wisconsin - Upper Michigan District was established in 1918. Now over 90 years later, the Wisconsin - Upper Michigan remains active with six regions and 180 clubs.
Circle K International (CKI) is the premiere university service organization in the world sponsored by Kiwanis International. With clubs on more than 550 campuses globally, programming is based upon the tenets of service, leadership, and fellowship.
Key Club is an international student-led organization which provides its members with opportunities to provide service, build character and develop leadership. This branch of the Kiwanis Family is at the high school level and has an organizational structure similar to Kiwanis and Circle K. The WI-UM Key Club District has 120 clubs with more than 6,500 members devoted to serving others.
Builders Club is the largest student led service organization for middle school students (ages 12 to 14). Community-based Builders Clubs also may be established at community facilities such as churches and libraries. Builder's Club is structured on the local level but supported by the Kiwanis International office. There are 1,500 clubs in five countries with 35,000 members worldwide. There are 33 active Builders Clubs in the Wisconsin Upper Michigan District.
Kiwanis Kids includes three programs for elementary school students between the ages of 6 and 12. In each, the lessons of leadership and self-development are introduced through learning to plan, setting goals, working with others, and celebrating successes. The programs are broken into three components: service, character education, and academic achievement. There are 27 clubs in the Wisconsin-Upper Michigan District.
Terrific Kids is a student recognition program that promotes character development, self-esteem, and perseverance. Students work with their classroom teacher and establish goals to improve behavior, peer relationships, attendance, or schoolwork. Thoughtful, Enthusiastic, Respectful, Responsible, Inclusive, Friendly, Inquisitive, Capable. To obtain a sponsorship toolkit, click here.
Aktion Club is the only community-service club for adults living with disabilities. Aktion Club allows members to develop initiative and leadership skills in serving their communities while enabling their integration into society. Aktion Club originated in Florida in 1987 and was adopted as an official sponsored program of Kiwanis International in 2000. The organization has more than 400 clubs in eight nations. There are 11 clubs with 271 members in the Wisconsin-Upper Michigan District.
Bring Up Grades (BUG) is a program designed to provide recognition to students who raise their grades into an acceptable range, and maintain or continue to raise them from one grading period to the next. To obtain a sponsorship toolkit, click here.
Key Leader is a leadership experience for today's youth leaders. It focuses on service leadership as the first, most meaningful leadership development experience. A Key Leader learns the most important lesson of leadership—leadership comes from helping others succeed. For students in the Wisconsin-Upper Michigan District, Key Leader will be held at Camp Wawbeek in Wisconsin Dells. Students under the age of 21 are able to attend this weekend.