Meet the National Recipients

Business & entrepreneurship

Arthur George Blake
​College: University of Texas at Austin
Major: Business
GPA: 4.0
High School: Lake Travis High School
Heritage: Venezuelan
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Arthur Blake was born for business. His interest in the topic began at an early age and skyrocketed during his freshman year of high school when he joined his high school’s DECA club. DECA is an organization that encourages the development of business and leadership skills through academic conferences and competitions. When he joined, he decided to compete in the Principles of Finance event, where he made his way into the finals at the Texas State Conference. His DECA club advisors also honored him with the Freshman of the Year award. The following year, he was appointed as an officer, a role he maintained for the rest of his high school career. He also started a business club at a local middle school and wrote a twenty-page essay on this topic. He and his partner competed in the Project Management Career Development event and qualified for the international competition with the paper they published. After two years of learning business concepts and applying them on a small scale, he decided to create an actual business. He is now co-founder of Snkr Truck, an official 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that collects and redistributes shoes to underprivileged communities in Austin, Texas. The Snkr Truck has donated back over five hundred pairs of shoes to locals in the city and hopes to continue donating thousands more in the years to come. He wrote about this endeavor for his junior year DECA project, which helped him finish as a state winner in the Project Management Community Giving event. Arthur is an Eagle Scout, an AP Scholar, and a National Hispanic Scholar. He has a perfect 4.0 GPA and was chosen as a McCombs Scholar while studying at the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas. He hopes to go into consulting and one day run a business of his own.

Community Service

Lauren Bartel
​College: Harvard College
Major: Biology with a minor in Anthropology
GPA: 4.0
High School: Gulliver Preparatory School
Heritage: Argentine
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"My parents instilled in me a belief in the service of others and, through the church, I learned the importance of grace," says Coral Gables, Florida resident, Lauren. For this Latina of Argentine descent, children's educational issues and conservation and sustainability awareness and advocacy have been core passions that have guided her life’s purpose since she was younger. As early as elementary school, when, on her own initiative, she had the impetus to start a local fundraiser selling cookies she baked to help raise money to help homeless children purchase books to read, Lauren remembers sensing a calling to help her community and the world around her. She has since dedicated herself, heart and soul, to serving her community, driven by a sense of duty, gratitude, and purpose to be a servant leader. To give you a glimpse of an idea into how much Lauren has invested into creating tangible results in her community and beyond: to date, only counting her high school years, Lauren has recorded well over 2,000 hours of community service and has been recognized, as her school's associate director of college and guidance counseling would call it, by "an almost absurd number" of national and regional awards and honors for her faithful dedication and prolific contributions, including being twice recipient of the President's Volunteer Service Award Gold Medal and winning the Congressional Medal Award—the highest honor the U.S. Congress can bestow on a youth civilian. Among her abundant initiatives, Lauren has: developed a free peer-tutoring program where hundreds of volunteer tutors across all subject areas offer their services to students in her community; created a new organization within the local Audubon Society, a nonprofit environmental organization dedicated to the conservation of birds and their habitats, for younger generation conservationists with an active education and awareness participation of hundreds of children and families; and founded Our Bright World, a nonprofit that recognizes, encourages, and supports the ideas of teenagers working toward effecting real-world change. Lauren has also conducted volunteer research in botany and marine biology and spearheaded leadership and service activities while being a vocal societal and environmental health champion and a certified climate action strategy leader. The caliber and the overwhelming extent of this multitalented, extraordinary young leader's achievements and far-reaching impacts are staggering. Lauren's genius shines through in all her endeavors. She is a nationally award-winning published author, visual artist, and photo essayist, currently working on the publication of both her first full-length novel as well as her groundbreaking biology research. This inspiring changemaker is now a freshman at Harvard College, where she plans to major in Integrative Biology with a minor in Anthropology and additional coursework in creative writing and visual arts. She aspires to obtain a PhD and become a high-impact scholar and biologist who combines life sciences research and community teaching to inspire others to work to improve the world around us.

Education

Paula Escobar
College: University of California, Los Angeles
Major: Education and Social Transformation
GPA: 3.92
High School: Evergreen Valley High School
Heritage: Quechua Bolivian
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A student proud of her Quechua Bolivian descent, Paula represents over 23,000 students in all East Side Union High School District's school board meetings and works with stakeholders to write policies. In this position, she has hosted town halls and trainings to foster student civic engagement and created a connection between students and her school district's board of trustees. In the summer of 2020, Paula championed a curriculum reform that centered critical race theory and ethnic studies as a graduation requirement to properly represent the rich histories of her community and allow students to embrace their unique identities. Garnering support from students across different ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds, she piloted her district's first diversity task force aimed at developing student-informed policy recommendations that highlight the intersectionality of experiences of her school district's student body across racial, gender, and socioeconomic lines. Through their organizing efforts, her district has passed resolutions to create its first-ever student-based mental health center, hired more guidance counselors of color, revised the sex education curriculum, and re-evaluated behavior response procedures to prioritize restorative justice. Paula strives to create synergy across her work, thinking critically of the ways disparities in education manifest across race, gender, and socioeconomic status. "These experiences taught me to continue embracing my roots: despite being from different walks of life, we are all united by our core belief of the importance of education, family, and dignity," shares Paula. This remarkable community leader is committed to advancing education equity in her community. In her roles on her school district's District English Learners Advisory Committee and Instructional Policy committee, Paula has garnered community input on funding allocations for measures that support equitable academic resilience, including anti-bias training for staff and translation assistance for multilingual families. Driven by the need to understand the complexity of these disparities in our education system, she joined her county's Juvenile Justice Commission, where she assisted in researching the impacts of the school-to-prison pipeline. Applying this knowledge to develop procedures for system-involved youth to successfully return to school, she collaborated with the National Center Youth Law as an intern to author reports that investigate school districts' and police departments' practices and their effect in amplifying the pipeline. Paula wants to continue centering the narratives of historically marginalized communities in educational policy as a future lawyer, driven to make systemic changes and uplift youth. She plans to major in Education and will continue to make an impact in her community as she attends the University of California, Los Angeles.

Engineering

Kaden Oquielí-White
​College: Columbia University
Major: Astrophysics and Engineering
GPA: 3.95
High School: Jesuit High School
Heritage: Honduran

“The exact moment I resolved to pursue astrophysics is unknown,” says Honduran American student Kaden. Before there was Hawkins, or Hubble, or Schwarzchild stirring intrigue and awe in the mind of Kaden, there was Gigi guiding his eyes to the sky. Gigi, Kaden’s late great-grandmother, “would point out electric skybluepink sunsets, the enormous moon, or pinpricks of light in the night sky” for Kaden. And though the precise moment he decided to become an astrophysicist may be unknown, the sum of the moments he shared admiring the observable beauty of the firmament with Gigi ignited his sense of wonder and “bonded [him] forever to her and to the astral beauty that embraces us.” As Kaden grew, so did his fascination with the world beyond Earth, as he learned about black holes and stellar evolution. Reading put the universe in Kaden’s hands as he insatiably read and learned about “all things celestial.” And though the precise moment he decided to become an astrophysicist may be unknown, it would appear the limit to his pursuit of knowledge DNE. It is “[t]he whys and whats”—Kaden’s curiosity—that compel this brilliant young man’s quest to expand the frontiers of scientific knowledge and our understanding of the cosmos. Kaden has conducted Astrophysics research on black holes, Hawking radiation, and quantum mechanics. Last year, he was selected for the NASA STEM Enhancement in Earth and Space Science (SEES) Astrobiology Internship focused on extremophiles’ ability to survive in outer space. He has shared his love for science while fostering interest in STEM as a volunteer for the Infinity Science Center’s Astro Camp and STEM Educational Ambassador program. As deep as his focus on astrophysics runs, back on Earth, Kaden’s interests run broad. He served as managing editor for his high school’s student-run newspaper, was poetry editor for its literary magazine, sang in the choir, was a member of the drama club, and was president of the fencing club. For Kaden, his mother has been another force of inspiration. He credits his mother for instilling in him the value of service. “She gave me ample opportunities to connect with diverse communities, develop my philanthropic passions, and encourage me to be a global citizen,” shares Kaden. He has developed a deep sense of community and grown as a Jesuit “man for others” by organizing service initiatives. During the prolific Louisiana storm season of 2020—Kaden lives right outside of New Orleans—he rallied his peers through school-wide drives to donate carloads of supplies to devastated families and filled community fridges with meals. Kaden also devised a plan to provide astronomy optics and beginner’s stargazing lessons to local assisted living facilities residents. These initiatives fostered connections among his community during times of social distance and pandemic solitude. “[This] reaffirmed to me that the human experience is vastly better when we all come together,” he says. Kaden is a first-year student at Columbia University, where he is already active in his campus community as a first-year representative for the FLI Network, working to bridge the gap and provide access to resources to first-generation and low-income students. He is a member of the Columbia Society for Physics Students, BlueShift Astronomy Club, and the Columbia Space Initiative and hopes to utilize his prior research experience as a journalist for the Columbia Science Review and volunteer with the campus food pantry. This remarkable Latino is currently pursuing a double major in Astrophysics and Engineering on a full-ride scholarship. Kaden’s fervent resolve for the future is to inclusively share the stars just as his Gigi shared the skies with him. His aim is to work with research institutions and government agencies to further advance our understanding of the cosmos and black holes, while also creating empowering educational engagement platforms to increase Latinx representation in STEM trajectories and careers.

Healthcare & Science

​Helena Servin-DeMarrais
​College: Columbia University
Major: Biomedical Engineering and Computer Science
GPA: 4.0
High School: Greenwich Academy
Heritage: Mexican and Irish

It is not an easy task to be brief about Helena’s talents and accomplishments. This Greenwich Academy alumna from Westport, Connecticut, went beyond what is expected of many high school students. She took and excelled in the most rigorous course load offered at her school, which included many terminal-level courses in each discipline. Guided by her interests and curiosity, Helena has pursued numerous challenging opportunities for growth. For example, she was accepted as a Brown Scholar in the BridgeUp: STEM program, which works to combat gender inequity in STEM fields, at the American Museum of Natural History. Through this program, she took part in a ten-month bioinformatics internship at the Sackler Institute for Comparative Genomic Studies with Museum provost Dr. Cheryl Hayashi. During this time, she learned bioinformatic skills she used to undertake research in computational biology and conducted computational analyses on spider silk genetics. Helena was also involved with the Science Honors Program at Columbia University, taking Saturday morning college-level classes during her junior and senior years. Her coursework at Columbia led her to pursue an internship in the computational biology lab of Professor Thomas Postler at Columbia Irving Medical Center. The lab will use the data gathered from her computational algorithm and experiments during that internship to research the specific functions of long noncoding RNAs in our immune system and aid in the development of cures for viral diseases. For her research in the Postler Lab, Helena was awarded the Bendheim Grant for Independent Summer Research. Last summer, alongside her work with Professor Postler, she was accepted into the MIT Online Science, Technology, and Engineering Community (MOSTEC) program, a six-month online science and engineering program. Beyond academics and scientific exploration, Helena is a competitive chess player and has even participated in international competitions. She credits chess for teaching her to “apply logic and problem solving to any problem [she] encounters” and to be resilient and persistent, taking a loss as an opportunity to learn, improve, and move forward. Wanting to empower others similarly, Helena volunteered to teach chess to elementary school children at a local shelter. She also served as a BridgeUp: STEM peer tutor. This gave her the opportunity to mentor younger students entering new internships at the American Museum of Natural History. For Helena, “biology becomes meaningful when it addresses human problems.” She is currently in her first semester at Columbia University, where she is pursuing degrees in Biomedical Engineering and Computer Science. Thanks to her dedication and outstanding academic performance, Helena was chosen by her university to be a C. Prescott Davis Scholar, a distinction awarded to the top twenty-five students in each grade at the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science.

Media & Entertainment

Ichtaca Lira
College: University of California, Los Angeles
Major: Theater (Integrated Studies emphasis)
GPA: 3.91
High School: Albany High School
Heritage: Mexican
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“At my core, I am both an artist and an activist,” remarks Ichtaca. They envision their future revolving around creating artwork and community-based organizations that make bold, progressive actions in unique and visionary ways. During high school, they served as the Artistic Director of Youth Uproar Theatre Company (YUTC), a teen-run organization that works to cultivate the growth of young theatremakers in the Bay Area. YUTC is dedicated to uplifting young voices from marginalized communities and making the arts more accessible for youth of color. Ichtaca was part of YUTC’s founding board in the summer of 2020. They helped create the company’s mission statement and bylaws, and also directed its inaugural show, which had a full cast and crew of people of color. Over the years, Ichtaca has been consistently involved with Bay Area theater organizations. One such organization is the Berkeley Repertory Theatre Teen Core Council, where they have been active since the tenth grade. This has allowed them the opportunity to interview established local theatremakers, host podcasts, and produce accessible arts events for teens in their community. Beginning in early 2020, they have also had seven internships, serving in different capacities, at YR Media, a national network of young journalists and artists. Through YR Media, Ichtaca published a podcast episode about race and identity with The Washington Post. Currently, they are an intern for “Inherited,” a New York Times acclaimed podcast dedicated to amplifying diverse voices behind the youth climate movement. A creative force and a conscientious leader, they care deeply for queer and trans visibility and rights, dismantling white supremacy, BIPOC solidarity, establishing new systems of community care, and the reconnection of BIPOC to their indigenous roots. These are also themes that they explored in their literary work in the creative writing program at the California State Summer School for the Arts. Ichtaca’s impact on their school community and their community at large is tangible. They collaborated with other students, parents, and educators on district-wide equity plans while serving as a student trustee for the Albany Unified School District’s Board of Education during their last year of high school. In addition to writing agenda items and resolutions, collecting student opinion data, and providing reports to the elected members of the school board, Ichtaca also represented their district’s student body on district sub-committees, including its Career Technical Education Committee, its Student Achievement Committee, and held a chair position on its Student Advocacy Committee. This fall semester, Ichtaca began their studies at the University of California, Los Angeles School of Theater, Film & Television. They are pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Theater with an Integrated Studies emphasis.

Public Service & Social Justice

Sebastián Vásquez
​College: Stanford University
Major: Undecided, considering: Political Science Environmental Studies, History, or Public Policy
GPA: 4.0
High School: Byram Hills High School
Heritage: Venezuelan
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Inspired to act by his family’s plight and activism amid the political crisis in his parent’s native Venezuela, Sebastian began his own story of activism in his town of North Castle in Westchester County, New York. “I asked myself: How can I do justice to my family—to myself—if I don’t fight for my vision of a better future?” Sebastian recalls. So he went into action. Sebastian is a student ambassador to the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU), chair of the High School Democrats of America (HSDA) Latinx Caucus, and elections director for Coalition Z—an organization that centers the voices of the younger generation in political conversation. He credits his involvement with the HSDA Latinx Caucus as having “been a big part of [his] life and shap[ing] [his] outlook on community.” Among his proudest accomplishments with the Caucus is playing a central role in reviving an almost inactive collective and building a community of supportive peers, co-leading recruitment efforts that resulted in an increase in membership from nearly 20 to over 100, personally spearheading “Conversations on Colorism”—a multi-caucus event focused on addressing discrimination, and supporting the campaigns of Latino political candidates that ran for election in 2020. Sebastian is co-founder of Sunrise Westchester, his county’s Hub of the Sunrise Movement, a national youth movement that advocates for political action against climate change. Sunrise Westchester was a fundamental part of the coalition that successfully advocated against the expansion of the Danskammer Power Plant, which threatened to hurt communities of color and harm air quality. As if that were not enough, Sebastian was also a respected leader and member of his high school community. At Byram Hills High School, he served as Model United Nations president, Academic Challenge co-captain, Government and Politics Club co-founder and co-president, Science Olympiad president and team captain, and Astronomy Club president. That he is able to take on numerous leading roles and juggle all of his different passions with confidence and skill speaks volumes about the strength of Sebastian’s character. This remarkable Latino leader has a long list of awards and recognitions in honor of his activism and academic excellence, including being a Coca-Cola Scholarship Semifinalist and a Hispanic Scholarship Fund Scholar. He is now a first-year student at Stanford University, where he is considering degrees in Political Science, Environmental Studies, History, and Public Policy.

SPorts & Fitness

​Tyler Armstrong
College: University of Colorado Boulder
Major: Finance
Sport(s): Mountaineering, Soccer, Swimming, Water Polo GPA: 3.68
High School: Yorba Linda High
Heritage: Uruguayan & British
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Tyler became a professional mountaineer at the age of seven and was only eight years old when he successfully climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, making him the second youngest person in the world to ever do so. A year later, at the age of nine, he traveled to South America to climb Mt. Aconcagua, which stands at a daunting 22,841 feet. By completing the summit, he set the world record as the youngest person ever to make it to the top. He climbed Mt. Denali in Alaska at the age of twelve, a trek that took three weeks, and relied on each team member to work together to survive the high winds and treacherous elements. So far, Tyler has climbed five out of the seven highest summits, with only Mt. Everest and Mt. Vinson left on his list. With the success and media attention that Tyler has achieved, he has also brought awareness to a cause he is passionate about—Duchenne muscular dystrophy. This genetic condition, affecting boys, is characterized by muscular degeneration and weakness. So far, with just the first five summits, Tyler has been able to raise an outstanding $500,000 for Duchenne research, and with his upcoming summits, Tyler hopes to raise even more money in hopes of finding a cure. Besides being a professional mountaineer, Tyler was also a three-sport varsity athlete at his high school and in club leagues. He has lettered in soccer, water polo and swimming, was a captain of his high school’s soccer team, and was named Most Valuable Player for water polo. In addition to all the fundraising that Tyler has done for Duchenne, Tyler is also a member of the National League of Young Men—a charitable organization that promotes leadership in young men, advocates for community service and being charitable among its members. Even with a tightly packed schedule filled with mountaineering, soccer, swimming, water polo at both the high school varsity level and club level, and volunteering, Tyler still managed to hold down two jobs while in high school. Of Uruguayan and British descent, with a rigorous course load of AP and Honors courses, Tyler maintained a perfect 4.0 GPA until graduation. He is currently studying Finance while in his first semester at the University of Colorado Boulder.

Sustainability (Green)

​Emely Hernández Urbina
College: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Major: Environmental Health Sciences with a minor in Applied Sciences and Engineering
GPA: 4.0
High School: South Mecklenburg High School
Heritage: Guatemalan
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For the past few years, South Mecklenburg High School graduate Emely has been working to make her community of Charlotte, North Carolina, more sustainable and eco-friendly. One of the ways in which she has done this is by creating presentations, spreadsheets, and visual models on carbon emissions and public transportation while interning with her city’s Mayor’s Youth Employment Program. Using the information she gathered, Emely devised a mobile app prototype to assist people in finding sustainable modes of transportation while simultaneously tracking their carbon footprint. Building on what she learned on this project and incorporating her interests in environmental justice, Emely examined the relationship between cognitive health and air pollution while conducting research at East Carolina University. Continuing with her mission to make her city more sustainable, Emely interned for 100 Gardens, an educational nonprofit that promotes sustainability by implementing aquaponics and STEM curriculums in schools. “Aquaponics is unique as it combine[s] aquaculture and hydroponics and produce[s] no waste,” explains Emely. As an intern, she raised hundreds of tilapia fish and grew vegetables—lettuce, tomatoes, sorrel, chives, and the like—which she later harvested and packaged to prepare for donation to refugees and local churches. During her senior year, Emely led an initiative to implement an aquaponics greenhouse at her school. She also researched how aquaponics programs can encourage high school students to pursue careers in STEM as part of her AP Research class. Serving her community played an important role in Emely’s high school experience. In addition to the work she did while promoting sustainability in her city, Emely also led children’s programs and events as the lead volunteer for the volunTEEN program at her local library. Having continuously challenged herself as a student, she maintained a 4.0 GPA and ranked among the top in her class throughout her high school career. She currently attends the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as a Chancellor’s Science Scholar. She is pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Health Sciences with a minor in Applied Sciences and Engineering. She wants to conduct research and create sustainable innovations to decrease total carbon emissions and air pollutants.

Technology

​Stellan Sarduy
College: Carnegie Mellon University         
Major: Mechanical Engineering and Robotics
GPA: 3.83
High School: Mater Academy Charter High School       
Heritage: Cuban & Dominican
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Mater Academy Charter High School graduate, Stellan, has been exploring his interest in technology through several school activities and organizations over the past seven years. Two of these organizations have been his high school's Vex Robotics Competition Club—where he served as president—and SECME Olympiad Club. Through his involvement in these organizations, Stellan, along with his teammates, competed in over 40 competitions and won at the regional, state, and even international levels. He is co-founder of his school's chapter of the International Robotics Honor Society (IRHS), an organization through which Stellan promoted growth in the future and community of STEAM and provided opportunities for students at his school to engage in "challenging, fun, and meaningful experiences through STEAM." This past May, thanks to his efforts, his IRHS chapter was presented with the International Robotics Honor Society Service First Place Award at the Vex Robotics World Championship. Last summer, Stellan was selected to participate in the six-month MIT Online Science, Technology, and Engineering Community (MOSTEC) program. This opportunity allowed him to take classes with MIT Computer Science and Electrical Engineering professors. "The program has inspired me and given me more clarity into my passions in technology. [It has] shown me that even though it is very difficult and requires a lot of skill and knowledge, [advancements are] best done with the help of peers and teamwork, [which] is something I have [also] learned throughout the last seven years in robotics and will take with me throughout my time in college and wherever my life takes me afterward," remarks Stellan. One of this Cuban Dominican American's most impactful community works was born in the middle of quarantine. With the help of one of his fellow Vex Robotics Competition Club members, he devised a way to keep children in his community distracted and motivated while encouraging them to pursue careers in STEM, by organizing their club's first Summer STEM Camp. For two months in 2020, Monday through Friday, the two of them spent six hours a day conducting online classes where they introduced their students to programming thinking and concepts using Scratch and later transitioned into teaching them Python programming fundamentals. They also taught them CAD basics on Fusion 360 and collaborated with them on challenges and fun projects where their students learned how real engineers use the engineering design process to innovate and come up with solutions to engineering problems. "[W]e wanted to give something fun for the kids to do but at the same time inspire them [to consider] a potential career pathway," shares Stellan. This dedicated Latino wants to see his community advance and has worked hard to help open doors for them. He is committed to serving his community while inspiring its members by sharing his knowledge and abilities with them. "What is the point of learning things if you can't teach [them] to others later on?" asks this inspiring community leader. Stellan continues making an impact while attending Carnegie Mellon University. He is pursuing degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Robotics on a full-ride scholarship as a Gates Scholar. He hopes that with his work, he can inspire more Latinos to pursue careers in STEM.