Group Leader Updates
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Stadium Information
- Stadium entry is through the North, East, and South Gates only. (West Gate will be closed.) Credentials are checked at all gates. All participants will pass through a weapons detector, and if needed, bags will be searched.
- We have a full house. Place bags and coats under your seat, not in an “empty” one nearby.
- You may not save seats for group members who are not present. Do not send one person to block off seats. Ushers and staff will be instructed to fill in seats with those who are present.
- Please leave unused seats on the aisle, not in the middle of the row.
- Floor seats are limited to those with the appropriate wristband for that session. These wristbands will be provided at on-site check-in. They are assigned in a lottery system. We are unable to accommodate requests and make changes to assignments. We cannot replace lost wristbands.
- Blue = Thursday Evening
- Yellow = Friday Morning
- Pink = Friday Evening
- Green = Saturday Morning
- Red = Saturday Evening
- If you have participants who need ASL interpretation, please go to Section 145.
Download the NCYC App
Be sure to download the 2025 NCYC App to stay up to date on all things NCYC.
Pre | Post NCYC Materials
Registration Help
As a reminder, all participants must register by November 1. The registration system will lock on this date to allow credentials to be printed. While you will be able to register participants after this date, please be prepared to wait in line at registration while your credentials are printed onsite. You will not be able to remove participants from tickets after November 1 without contacting NFCYM.
Diocesan delegation leaders, please distribute the tickets you have purchased and encourage your local leaders to distribute the tickets you have sent them. Local leaders, please encourage your chaperones and parents/guardians to complete the registration form.
A properly completed chaperone/adult registration should have the adult’s name in both the Current Holder and Participant columns.
A properly completed youth registration should have the guardian’s name in the Current Holder column and the youth’s name in the Participant Column.
If this isn’t what you see when reviewing your Manage Tickets page, read through our blog about NCYC registration.
To view the blog, Click Here>
Clear Bags Needed at Lucas Oil Stadium (LOS)
Lucas Oil Stadium encourages EVERYONE to use a clear bag during NCYC. Anyone with a non-clear bag must use the Southeast Gate to enter the stadium. This is the only entrance available for non-clear bag entry. Entry time will depend on the number of participants with non-clear bags, including delegation leaders (ticket originators), nursing mothers, and those with medical conditions requiring additional equipment.
Credentialed media personnel are permitted to enter through the Northwest Media Gate.
LOS has required clear bags for public events since 2015. The rule now applies to all LOS guests. Bags must adhere to the guidelines below:
- Clear plastic, vinyl, or PVC bags (max size: 12” x 6” x 12”)
One-gallon clear plastic freezer bags
Small clutch bags (max size: 4.5” x 6.5”)
Prohibited bags include backpacks, camera bags, fanny packs, and regular purses.
Exceptions: Nursing and medical supplies are exempt from the clear bag requirement but are subject to additional screening or search. LOS will also allow NCYC group leaders* to bring a larger backpack or messenger-style bag. (Leaders carrying such bags must enter through a specified gate and connect with their group on the concourse.)
We are selling two clear bag options onsite to ensure you are ready for 2025 NCYC.
Participants are welcome to bring water bottles into Lucas Oil Stadium. Bottles do not need to be clear or empty, but all items are subject to standard security screening at the entrances.
Safety and Security at NCYC
We know the world is a scary place and getting scarier. Unfortunately, this is not the first time NCYC has occurred during ongoing national and international conflict.
The Indiana Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD) works closely with Visit Indy (the local convention and visitors’ bureau), the Indiana Convention Center (ICC), Lucas Oil Stadium (LOS), and NFCYM to ensure that all visitors have a safe and enjoyable experience in the city. IMPD liaises with the Department of Homeland Security and the local FBI field office to ensure they know and are prepared to address potential threats. Currently, there is no heightened risk to our conference or participants.
Nonetheless, we remain alert. We have what are known as hard and soft security measures in place to protect participants. Things like advanced registration requirements, weapon detectors (LOS), clear bag requirements (LOS), and badge-checking help ensure we know who and what is present. Uniformed security and off-duty officers on the buildings’ interior and exterior help signal to those wishing to cause harm that law enforcement is present and prepared to respond.
To read our latest blog post about Safety and Security Click Here >
Food at NCYC
The Indiana Convention Center and Lucas Oil Stadium is a cashless facility for all food & beverage purchases. A cash-to-card kiosk, which exchanges cash for a debit card, is located within the Speedway Corridor vending area on the first level of the Indiana Convention Center. For more information Click Here>
For more options on food and beverage Click Here >
Interactive Exhibit Hall Service Project
Through the Eucharist – I AM Transformed
The gift of the Eucharist invites a response to turn that gift into action and become Christ for others through service. Here’s what we’re asking participants to bring to NCYC: We’re asking participants to bring plastic grocery bags, t-shirts (clean), diapers (size 2+), and wipes to help those in need and truly be the hands and feet of Christ!
Novena to the Holy Spirit
In preparation for 2025 NCYC, you are invited to join a Novena to the Holy Spirit. The novena will begin on Thursday, November 13, and end on Friday, November 21, with a consecration to the Holy Spirit.
Those onsite at NCYC will partake in this prayer and consecration before the Digital Encounter with Pope Leo XIV.
St. John Boxed Lunch/ Dinner Pre-Order
Please use the following form to place your group’s order for box lunches from St. John’s (located directly across the street from the convention center. Box lunches are available for lunch and dinner on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, November 20-22, during NCYC in Indianapolis.
All box lunches include a choice of ham or turkey, assorted chips, an apple, assorted desserts, and bottled water or assorted pop. Please let St. John’s know if there are any dietary restrictions. All other items are placed into the box at random. The total cost is $10 per person. If you know your desired pick-up time, please note that on your order form; otherwise, they will contact you to arrange that. While supplies last!
Chaperone Information
Chaperones must be at least 21 years of age and must submit an NFCYM/NCYC Legal Agreement.
While NFCYM does not require anything else, if you are coordinating a group for in-person participation, we recommend you collect your own permission/consent and a medical permission form, including emergency contact information, insurance information, and pertinent health and medical information for each person in your group. Your parish, school, or diocese should have templates for these forms. If traveling as a family, these forms would not be necessary.
Participant Details
A reminder that participant details must be entered in your NCYC registration and housing portal by September 30 to allow us time to send out the digital liability waiver forms (see below). For each participant, you must enter
- Participant type—youth, adult, or clergy
- First name (ex. Carol)
- Badge name (ex. Maureen—bet you didn’t know Maureen’s first name is Carol)
- Last name (ex. Gross)
- Email address—for youth, you must enter a parent or guardian’s email, for adults and clergy, enter their email. Click here for instructions if a parent does not have an email.)
- Interpretation needs—Options are no, yes—into ASL, yes—into Spanish*
If you register participants after September 30, we ask that you enter these details within one business day. If you have all your participants entered already, please email Mayra Carpena, [email protected] to inform her, and she can send out liability forms for your group prior to October 1
* Spanish interpretation is not guaranteed. We are working to expand our interpretation capabilities and want a sense of the need
Safe Environment Compliance
PARISH/SCHOOL/DIOCESAN/ORGANIZATION GROUP LEADERS: If you haven’t already, now is an excellent time to start verifying that the adults in your group comply with your diocese’s safe environment policies, including up-to-date training and third-party screening. Non-compliant adults will need to complete training or screening to participate in NCYC. You must certify that all adults in your group are safe environment compliant to pick up your group’s NCYC credentials onsite.
FAMILY GROUP LEADERS: You are not required to have diocesan safe environment clearance if you are participating with your child(ren) independent of a parish, school, diocese, or organization. If you are cleared for service with minors and would like your NCYC credential to reflect that, please ask the compliance officer for your clearing organization to complete and return the form that will be available very soon.
NCYC Parent Resource
This document aims to guide parents who are sending their children to NCYC, covering preparation for, actions during, and follow-up after the conference. Please share it with your group’s parents!
Hotel Next Steps
If you requested 11 or more rooms in the NCYC hotel block, your rooming list is due to your hotel(s) by 4 pm ET on Friday, October 27. Ask your hotel representative if they have a preferred format. If not, you can use this Excel Template >
If you have reserved ten or fewer rooms through the NCYC portal, our registration and housing company, Progress in Planning, will transfer your reservation data before the end of October. The data transfer may prompt your hotel’s auto-response, including a specific confirmation number for each reservation. Regardless, you should be able to verify your reservation directly with your hotel after November 1.
If you have not reserved hotel rooms or need additional rooms, you may still reserve/request rooms through your NCYC portal.
Excused Absence Memo
Academics are important, and we know many students are involved in extracurricular activities, which makes NCYC participation challenging. If you have not already found it, we provide a memo to principals, coaches, and activity directors that students can use to request that their absence be excused.
Youth Ambassadors
The Youth Ambassador program allows young people from across the country to take a servant-leader role in NCYC. Group leaders are encouraged to create a team (or teams!) to provide a welcoming presence and assistance with specific breakout session-related tasks at NCYC.
Youth Ambassador Tasks:
- Leading prayer
- Introducing speakers and performers
- Greeting participants at the doors
- Facilitating the flow of people entering and exiting the room
- Providing support to presenters
To learn more about the youth ambassadors or register Click Here >
Clergy Participation
If you have priests in your group (or are a priest) who wishes to provide sacramental ministry at NCYC (concelebrate at Mass, hear confessions) or deacons who wish to vest and assist at Mass, please have your bishop or their religious order superior send a Letter of Suitability on their behalf to the Archdiocese of Indianapolis. The letter should reference the clergy’s suitability for ministry, including completion of safe environment training and current background status.
These letters should be addressed to:
Reverend Monsignor William Stumpf
Vicar General
Attn: Office of Clergy
Archdiocese of Indianapolis
1400 N. Meridian Street
Indianapolis, IN 46202
Email the letter to [email protected] with a courtesy copy (cc) to [email protected]. Questions regarding letters of suitability can be emailed to this address as well.
If you have priests in your group who wish to provide sacramental ministry at NCYC (concelebrate at Mass, hear confessions) or deacons who wish to vest and assist at Mass, please have your bishop or their religious order superior send a Letter of Suitability on their behalf to the Archdiocese of Indianapolis. The letter should reference the clergy’s suitability for ministry, including completion of safe environment training and current background status. These letters should be addressed to:
If you are a priest who wishes to provide sacramental ministry at NCYC (concelebrate Mass, hear confessions) or a deacon who wishes to vest and assist at Mass, you must submit a Letter of Suitability from your bishop or religious superior. The letter must reference your suitability for ministry and your completion of safe environment training and background check status.
Address your letter to:
Reverend Michael Perucho
Attn: Office of Vicar of Clergy
Archdiocese of Los Angeles
3424 Wilshire Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90010
Email the letter to [email protected] with a courtesy copy (cc) to [email protected].
The letter should be emailed to [email protected] and cc [email protected]. Questions regarding letters of suitability can be emailed to this address as well.
