Ashten Vincent, 17, of Edmond and Katherine Prior, 13, of Oklahoma City
today were named Oklahoma's top two youth volunteers of 2014 by The
Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, a nationwide program honoring
young people for outstanding acts of volunteerism. Ashten was nominated
by Edmond North High School in Edmond, and Katherine was nominated by
Girl Scouts Western Oklahoma in Oklahoma City. The Prudential Spirit of
Community Awards, now in its 19th year, is conducted by Prudential
Financial in partnership with the National Association of Secondary
School Principals (NASSP).
Ashten, a junior at Edmond North High School, formed a teen volunteer
group four years ago that now includes more than 600 students who have
logged more than 3,000 hours of community service. Ashten was inspired
to start her group when her voice teacher tragically lost both her
parents. “My friends and I rallied together to meet a need that was
right in front of us,” said Ashten. “We made her meals, babysat her kids
and wrote her encouraging cards.”
But Ashten didn’t want to stop there, so she started a group called
“RAKIT,” “Random Acts of Kindness in Teens,” and began recruiting
members. Ashten then began identifying volunteer opportunities that
matched up with the interests of specific groups in her school. She
found a softball league for adults with disabilities, for example, and
recruited members of her school’s baseball team to work with them. RAKIT
members also have visited nursing homes and made crafts for the
residents, donated gas cards at convenience stores, and worked at a
local food bank. Ashten also organized a basketball game that pitted
high school students against community leaders to raise $1,500 for
charity, and spearheaded a “28 Days of Kindness” campaign in five middle
schools. “We reflect compassion and love for one another when we serve,
and that then sets an example for others to follow,” said Ashten.
Katherine, a home-schooled eighth-grader, monitors the water quality in
a nearby creek for a state conservation commission and educates other
young people and her community about how their actions affect the
waterway. Katherine became interested in environmental science while
participating in Girl Scout activities. At first, it was simply a way to
spend time with friends, but “the activities were so much fun and so
much more interesting than my science textbook that I was inspired to
learn and do more,” she said.
After taking a two-day training session, Katherine began collecting
water samples at Crutcho Creek with some friends once a month, recording
environmental changes, taking photos, and logging air and water
temperatures. Afterwards, they take the water samples home and perform
tests to analyze the chemicals in the samples. The girls also take
cultures of bacteria in the water, grow them in an incubator, and report
on E. coli levels in the creek. These monthly readings are entered into
a database of the Oklahoma Conservation Commission’s Water Quality
Division. “It’s truly inspiring to see how even little things – cleaning
up trash, clearing fallen leaves from the river, using less fertilizer –
can affect the chemistry of water and quality of the habitat of the
stream,” said Katherine. She also presented a model at a science fair
showing how storm drainage affects the creek. Katherine and two other
Girl Scouts also wrote and illustrated a children’s book that teaches
the importance of recycling, and donated copies to organizations that
serve children.
As State Honorees, Ashten and Katherine 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 2014.
Distinguished Finalists
The program judges also recognized four other Oklahoma students as
Distinguished Finalists for their impressive community service
activities. Each will receive an engraved bronze medallion.
These are Oklahoma's Distinguished Finalists for 2014:
Cierra Little Water Fields, 14, of Fort Gibson, Okla., a freshman
at Fort Gibson High School, created and implemented Oklahoma’s first
“Native Youth Summit,” a free full-day conference where 212 attendees
from 19 tribal nations across the country learned about bullying and
suicide prevention, health, indigenous rights and other issues of
importance to their communities. Cierra, who secured $15,000 in
donations and a Youth Service America grant, developed the curriculum,
coordinated guest speakers, promoted the program, managed registration,
and recruited volunteers to help.
Jessica Miller, 18, of Wright City, Okla., a senior at Wright
City High School, created and implemented a bullying awareness and
prevention program for seventh-graders. Jessica reached out to school
administrators after conducting extensive research, organized an
anti-bullying rally and walkathon, conducted hands-on activities to
teach about cyber, physical and emotional bullying, and arranged for a
presentation from a speaker from the program “I Stand for the Silent.”
Erika Vinson, 18, of Muskogee, Okla., a senior at Warner High
School, created a food pantry at Warner Public Schools that collects and
distributes large boxes of food for holiday meals to families in need.
Erika recruited a team of volunteers, made and distributed flyers, and
organizes and distributes the food boxes for Thanksgiving, Christmas and
Easter holidays.
Kaylee Young, 17, of Norman, Okla., a member of the Cleveland
County 4-H and a junior at Coach Academy, helped to coordinate the
making and distribution of more than 1,800 fabric ties filled with
water-absorbent material – known as “cool ties” – that helped keep
people cool as they cleaned up after the tornadoes that ripped through
Cleveland County. Kaylee, who has been making cool ties for the troops
for the past three years, organized 52 volunteers to sew them.
“We applaud each of these young people for their exemplary volunteer
service,” said Prudential Chairman and CEO John Strangfeld. “They use
their time and talents to make a meaningful difference in their
communities, and we hope their example inspires others to do the same.”
“By going above and beyond in their volunteer service, these students
have brought positive change to communities across the country,” said
JoAnn Bartoletti, executive director of NASSP. “Congratulations to each
and every one of them on this well-deserved honor.”
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 HandsOn Network affiliates, 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 5, 10 of the State Honorees –
five middle level and five high school students – will be named
America’s top youth volunteers of 2014. 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 100,000 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 and China. 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 on
behalf of President Barack Obama.
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 national voice for middle level and high
school principals, assistant principals, and all school leaders from
across the United States and more than 36 countries around the world.
The association connects and engages school leaders through advocacy,
research, education, and student programs. NASSP advocates on behalf of
all school leaders to ensure the success of each student and strengthens
school leadership practices through the design and delivery of high
quality professional learning experiences. 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
Association of Student Councils. For more information about
NASSP, located in Reston, VA, visit 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.
Editors: For full-color pictures of the Spirit of Community Awards
program logo and medallions, click here: http://bit.ly/Xi4oFW
Copyright Business Wire 2014