Project 351: Captivated With Purpose

My journey with service and advocacy began in 8th grade with Project 351, a nonprofit that selects one 8th-grader from each of the 351 cities in MA for a youth-led movement of positive change.

As an Ambassador, I helped organize initiatives like clothing drives, a 9/11 Tribute Service to honor fallen heroes and a food drive. Despite the challenges of COVID, I loved working with my team to plan projects and engage our community in creative ways—like hosting a teacher TikTok Dance Battle to encourage student participation!

Project 351 quickly became like a second family to me. Now, I serve on the Alumni Leadership Team, mentoring the next class of changemakers. I am honored to lead the Thaddeus Miles and Dee-1 Service Hero team, supporting and encouraging 20 ambassadors as they begin their service journey. Building meaningful connections with them has been a highlight—I learn as much from them as they do from me. Project 351 has equipped me with humility and confidence to raise my voice on issues such as racial equity and mental wellness on platforms with leaders like Governor Maura Healy and Secretary of Education Tutwiler, inspiring me to continue this work with purpose and passion.

Blending Magic and Logic

Over the past few months, I've been collaborating with friends and members of the Project 351 community to develop a nonprofit organization called Stemmies dedicated to empowering youth to build problem-solving skills. Through engineering and innovative exploration, we help young people create small-scale solutions to global challenges and dive deeper into topics often overlooked in traditional academics. From extreme weather events to deteriorating urban infrastructure, our goal is to educate youth about the urgent issues our world faces, the efforts being made to address them, and how they can make a difference now and in the future. We lead various workshops in schools and community event.

Courageous Conversations

Just as basketball players rely on a playbook to execute their best game, the Boston Celtics Playbook Initiative is a toolkit for becoming champions of justice and inclusivity. Through real-world scenarios tackling racism and identity-based discrimination, high school students lead brave conversations, addressing the challenges youth face and co-creating solutions for safe, inclusive communities.

My journey with Playbook began during my 8th-grade year, as a participant in a virtual Playbook workshop. At the time, I was a quiet, often-shy middle schooler who had switched schools frequently, bringing with me the unique experiences of being an immigrant, queer, and person of color. In those workshops, I felt heard even before I spoke, listening to peers share stories of bias and discrimination. By the second session, encouraged by my trainers, I found the courage to speak up—and from that moment, I hoped to become a trainer myself.

Now, as a high school senior, I am grateful for the Playbook community and its support in helping me lead eight workshops, impacting over 120 students and engaging 50+ educators. These numbers represent people from all walks of life who carry stories of challenges and discrimination, yet also dreams of equity, diversity, and inclusion. Playbook became my springboard, equipping me to bring long-term changes to my community by starting a diversity club and advocating for inclusivity at state and national levels.

Unsung Voices

In 2022, my peers and I were tired of feeling powerless and angry about acts of hate being swept under the rug, and our requests being unheard. It is challenging to be a voice of change in a town that is afraid of change and all the decision-makers look different than you. We can’t move forward together if some voices are left behind.Through the support and dedication of many people in our community, we united group of over 50 dedicated students and educators and started a chapter of Diversify Our Narrative, a national organization pushing for racial justice in communities. I am committed to bringing institutional changes beyond just my high school. I help establish new chapters in the Midwest region and guide them as they fight for racial equity in their communities because every student deserves to see themselves in their learning.

Institutional Reforms

I am committed to creating lasting change that reaches beyond my high school. In 2023, I was honored to be nominated for the Princeton Prize in Race Relations, a national award recognizing students advancing racial equity in their communities. This summer, I joined their Executive Board as Secretary, where I help lead projects to spark important conversations, foster advocacy, and build allyship across even more communities. Through the Governor’s Youth Council and the Princeton Prize Council, I feel grateful to unite with changemakers from all walks of life, tackling issues that are at the heart of youth today such as inclusive school curriculum and equitable, culturally-reponsive mental health resources for .

Empowering Women

I started serving with Girl Up this summer after being inspired by their efforts to pass the I AM Period Equity Bill that will provide free period products in public buildings. Girl Up is a United Nations Foundation dedicated to empowering women and driving social change. I serve on the Regional Engagement Team and help create informative content for our growing audience of over 2,000 followers on social media. Additionally, we organize community events focused on voter registration and raise awareness about civic engagement by uniting local chapters to strengthen our collective voice. Through this work, I am learning the importance of advocacy, the power of grassroots efforts, and how a dedicated community can amplify change.