LINCOLN, Neb., Feb. 5, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Pranav Rajan, 16, of Lincoln and Jorja Boller, 10, of Beatrice today were named Nebraska's top two youth volunteers of 2019 by The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, a nationwide program honoring young people for outstanding acts of volunteerism. As State Honorees, Pranav and Jorja each will receive $1,000, an engraved silver medallion and an all-expense-paid trip in early May to Washington, D.C., where they will join the top two honorees from each of the other states and the District of Columbia for four days of national recognition events. During the trip, 10 students will be named America's top youth volunteers of 2019.
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, now in its 24th year, is conducted by Prudential Financial in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP).
These are Nebraska's top youth volunteers of 2019:
High School State Honoree: Pranav Rajan
Nominated by Lincoln East High School
Pranav, a junior at Lincoln East High School, co-founded a statewide organization that gives high school students the chance to combine volunteer service with experiential learning by working on computer-based technology projects for community organizations. When he was in ninth grade, Pranav began to question the usefulness of what he was learning in school. He concluded that learning by doing, rather than just studying, would be much more effective. "When students realize the real-life applications of the concepts learned in school, they begin to show interest and take initiative," he said. Pranav also reasoned that if his peers could work on educational projects for local nonprofits and other organizations, both the students and society would benefit.
After many conversations with fellow students and his geography teacher, Pranav found four nearby organizations that needed help solving technological issues, and then assembled teams of high school students to work on them. Over time, Pranav forged partnerships with other organizations, enlisted the support of two university professors and two school district administrators, and recruited more than 50 students to participate in projects. These have included developing an application to reduce doctors' stress levels for a health nonprofit, creating a database for a student-loan concern, building a website for an entrepreneurship organization, and designing an automated data process for an analytics company. With projects now all over Nebraska, Pranav's "CodeForChange" organization is starting to take root in California and New Jersey, as well. "Our overarching goal is to get students into volunteering while simultaneously learning computer science and entrepreneurship," said Pranav.
Middle Level State Honoree: Jorja Boller
Nominated by Stoddard Elementary School
Jorja, a fifth-grader at Stoddard Elementary School, created a charity that distributes gift bags to residents of several retirement homes every year at Christmastime. Jorja has been volunteering at Beatrice Good Samaritan Center since she was 5 years old, and still spends 12-20 hours a month there. Several years ago, she wanted to make sure one of the residents received a Christmas gift, so she set up a lemonade stand to raise money. But as Christmas drew closer, Jorja decided she couldn't just do this for one resident; she had to give presents to everyone at the nursing home. "There are many people who don't get visited often," she explained. "It can be very lonely." Her desire, she said, is to "make sure that at Christmastime no one is left out."
The first year, Jorja's family and the staff at the Good Samaritan Center helped her collect enough money and other donations to give out 108 gift bags. "It was so fun delivering them the week of Christmas and giving lots of hugs," she said. The next year, she named her project "Gifts for Grands," sold lemonade to raise funds and collected gift cards at her birthday party. Then her 4-H club joined the effort, helping Jorja conduct bake sales, trash pickups and other fundraisers; make greeting cards; and assemble gift bags. When Christmas comes, they load up a big cart and pass out bags while walking through the halls of the nursing homes wearing Santa Claus hats. Jorja expected to deliver 400 gift bags in seven different retirement facilities this past Christmas, and is now helping a girl in Oklahoma start her own "Gifts for Grands" chapter there.
Distinguished Finalists
The program judges also recognized two other Nebraska students as Distinguished Finalists for their impressive community service activities. Each will receive an engraved bronze medallion.
These are Nebraska's Distinguished Finalists for 2019:
Ina Bhoopalam, 17, of Lincoln, Neb., a senior at Lincoln East High School, created a gender empowerment program in which high school volunteers work with elementary and middle level girls in 19 schools to combat gender stereotypes and give them the confidence to pursue their dreams. Ina developed a curriculum, recruited volunteers, designed training materials, tested a small pilot program, and then persuaded her school district to approve implementation in multiple schools.
Carly Renken, 17, of Gretna, Neb., a senior at Millard South High School, co-founded a nonprofit organization that conducts music sessions for more than 40 kids with special needs in the Omaha metro area. Her nonprofit, "Special Musicians," which is designed to provide an inclusive, safe and fun learning environment, teaches basic music theory; features instrument-playing, singing and dancing; and culminates with a performance in front of friends and family members.
"These young volunteers learned and demonstrated that they can make meaningful contributions to individuals and communities through their service," said Prudential CEO Charles Lowrey. "It's an honor to recognize their great work, and we hope that shining a spotlight on their service inspires others to consider how they might make a difference."
"Each of these honorees is proof that students have the energy, creativity and unique perspectives to create positive change," said JoAnn Bartoletti, executive director of NASSP. "We commend each of the 2019 honorees for their outstanding volunteer service, and for the invaluable example they've set for their peers."
About The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards represents the United States' largest youth recognition program based solely on volunteer service. All public and private middle level and high schools in the country, as well as all Girl Scout councils, county 4-H organizations, American Red Cross chapters, YMCAs and affiliates of Points of Light's HandsOn Network, were eligible to select a student or member for a local Prudential Spirit of Community Award. These Local Honorees were then reviewed by an independent judging panel, which selected State Honorees and Distinguished Finalists based on criteria including personal initiative, effort, impact and personal growth.
While in Washington, D.C., the 102 State Honorees – one middle level and one high school student from each state and the District of Columbia – will tour the capital's landmarks, meet top youth volunteers from other parts of the world, attend a gala awards ceremony at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, and visit their congressional representatives on Capitol Hill. On May 6, 10 of the State Honorees – five middle level and five high school students – will be named America's top youth volunteers of 2019. These National Honorees will receive additional $5,000 awards, gold medallions, crystal trophies and $5,000 grants from The Prudential Foundation for nonprofit charitable organizations of their choice.
Since the program began in 1995, more than 125,000 young volunteers have been honored at the local, state and national level. The program also is conducted by Prudential subsidiaries in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Ireland, India, China and Brazil. In addition to granting its own awards, The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program also distributes President's Volunteer Service Awards to qualifying Local Honorees.
For information on all of this year's Prudential Spirit of Community State Honorees and Distinguished Finalists, visit http://spirit.prudential.com or www.nassp.org/spirit.
About NASSP
The National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) is the leading organization of and voice for principals and other school leaders across the United States. NASSP seeks to transform education through school leadership, recognizing that the fulfillment of each student's potential relies on great leaders in every school committed to the success of each student. Reflecting its long-standing commitment to student leadership development, NASSP administers the National Honor Society, National Junior Honor Society, National Elementary Honor Society, and National Student Council. Learn more at www.nassp.org.
About Prudential Financial
Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE: PRU), a financial services leader, has operations in the United States, Asia, Europe, and Latin America. Prudential's diverse and talented employees are committed to helping individual and institutional customers grow and protect their wealth through a variety of products and services, including life insurance, annuities, retirement-related services, mutual funds and investment management. In the U.S., Prudential's iconic Rock symbol has stood for strength, stability, expertise and innovation for more than a century. For more information, please visit www.news.prudential.com.
For Spirit of Community Awards program logo and medallion graphics, please visit https://spirit.prudential.com/resources/media
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