Megan Brokaw - 2020 Student Finalist
Megan Brokaw is a fifth grader at River Grove Elementary School. A few months ago, Megan went to the fourth and fifth grade classes to invite students to sign up for a Dance Club, a student-led group that would meet once each week during recess. Nearly sixty students signed up! Since then, a solid group of about eighteen students meet weekly in the gym for the River Grove Dance Club. Megan and her classmates get together a couple of days before each club meeting to plan choreography. When the club meets, Megan teaches the students the dance, which the group practices during the meeting. Dance Club participants are learning how to follow choreography, work both in pairs and with a larger team, move to rhythm, and enjoy both hip hop and jazz music with an open mind, ear, and physical connection to the music. According to one of her nominators, Megan’s Dance Club provides a wonderful outlet for creativity during the school day, as well as a place of belonging for any student wishing to be part of a group.
Ella Fuentes - 2020 Student Finalist
Ella Fuentes is a sophomore at Lake Oswego High School. As part of her work with the National Charity League, she spent many hours volunteering at the Caring Closet, a nonprofit in Tigard that makes donated clothing available to people in need. Realizing that there are many students in need in our area, she started I Love Lake Oswego, a nonprofit, student run 501 (c)(3), which serves as a donation-based clothing closet for students within the Lake Oswego School District. What began in her family’s basement is now located in a building behind the Hunger Fighters Food Pantry. Since last June, I Love Lake Oswego has helped more than one hundred students obtain hygiene products and clothing items, and they expect to reach many more. Ella says, “There are students in need who want clothes that fit, that are in style, and that they can pick out themselves. Our nonprofit fills that need."
Doris Yang - 2020 Student Finalist
Doris Yang is a mentor to high school and junior high students. Doris’ service is remarkable, not least because of its continuity. When Doris was in eighth grade, she began mentoring some of Lake Oswego Junior High’s students with disabilities. Doris found that she enjoyed the experience, and has continued to work with disabled students throughout each of her four years at Lake Oswego High School. Beyond that, though, Doris has devoted time to a wide range of mentoring activities. She’s spent four years working with junior high students who are math enthusiasts. She meets with them for 30 minutes a week, always trying to push their thinking to the next level. She has also been actively participating on the LOHS Speech and Debate team, acting as a mentor to novice high school debaters during her sophomore, junior, and senior years. Doris says mentoring is a great way to facilitate social interaction between students of different ages and interests. It’s allowed her to meet and get to know kids that she otherwise might never have met, so it’s a win-win for all concerned.