The YouthCon Scholarship contest aims to encourage high school students living in the Washington D.C. Metropolitan area to be actively involved with philanthropic work to make a difference in their local communities. The first place scholarship award totals $4,000 and is given to an innovative and driven student that shows a strong giving-back spirit and is in pursuit of strengthening his/her presentation skills, writing, and leadership.
- Key Members: The 2020 YouthCon Scholarship Team consisted of the lead, Daniel Nguyen, as well as members Ashley Rodriguez and Jennifer Hoang. The team of senior high school students was supported by mentor, and AASuccess Board Member, Wendy Yuan.
- Goal: The goal of this year’s scholarship competition was to give high school students the platform to brainstorm creative solutions to pressing community issues. The YouthCon team wanted to attract a small group of students who had a passion that they wanted to realize. Furthermore, the team wanted to inspire other students to give back to their communities as much as they could.
- Prompt: Submit a 500-600 word essay based on the following prompt: Here at AASuccess, the cycle of giving back is an integral part of our mission. We believe that every act of generosity ripples throughout its community and inspires change. Share with us a local or community issue you are passionate about. Given a budget of $200, how would you use your skillset to create a project that would leave a lasting legacy of giving back in your community?
- Timeline: September 2019 – July 2020
- Result to date: The project was successfully launched and marketed through AASuccess’ various social media platforms. After passing through the Essay and Oral Presentation rounds, the winner of the scholarship, Elizabeth Nguyen, 18, was chosen. She is currently working with the YouthCon team during her 6-week Leadership Development Summer Internship to carry out her winning project idea. For more information about Elizabeth and her winning idea, click here.
- Learn more: http://youthcon.aasuccess.org
