Middle and high school students honored for leadership, volunteerism, and success despite difficult odds
The annual Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners' Youth Excellence and Achievement (YEA!) Awards recognize young peoples' positive contributions in three categories: Leadership, Volunteer or Community Service, and Success Despite Difficult Odds. Selected by the Hillsborough County Commission on the Status of Women, these students are shining examples of young people dedicating themselves to improving their community and shape its future.
The Board of County Commissioners honored the winners during its Oct. 15 meeting. During the presentation, these six students were recognized for their initiative, innovation, and commitment to their community:
Leadership
Arin Jadhao from Williams Middle Magnet School
A 12-year-old seventh grader, Arin Jadhao accomplished much at Pride Elementary before his acceptance at Williams Middle Magnet School. His achievements include captain of the Black History Brain Bowl Team, second-place winner in the 4-H Hillsborough County Speech Competition, first-place winner of the school spelling bee, news anchor on the WPRC Morning Show, and numerous recognitions for his work in the Science Olympics and the Hillsborough Lego Robotics Competition. Additionally, he was chosen by the Florida House of Representatives for its Page & Messenger Program, where he interviewed several state representatives and took leadership positions on the student committee. A 4.0 GPA student, Arin performs stand-up comedy, plays tennis, and is writing his first full-length novel.
Ainara Gomez from Sickles High School
A 17-year-old senior at Sickles High School, Ainara Gomez is the founder and secretary-general of the 2025 to 2026 Model United Nations Club. She has also honed her collaboration skills and musical abilities as president of the Sickles High School choral program and has shown exceptional communication skills through her internships at the Community Food Pantry and Bags of Hope. While serving as a volunteer coordinator for Love in Layers, a student-led nonprofit providing clothing to underserved communities, Ainara fostered a collaboration between Love in Layers and Bags of Hope, combining clothing kits with toiletry essentials to create more comprehensive support packages. While undertaking a demanding course load that includes Advanced Placement and Dual Enrollment classes, she achieved a 4.7 weighted GPA, succeeding in college-level studies despite still being in high school.
Volunteer or Community Service
Tritiya Rajagopal from Williams Middle Magnet School
A seventh grader with a 4.0 GPA at Williams Middle Magnet School, 12-year-old Tritiya Rajagopal excelled in his Advanced Placement courses, earning him the President's Award for Educational Excellence from the U.S. Department of Education. In addition to creating a non-invasive cancer detection project that won national recognition and presenting research on natural therapies at the Florida State Horticultural Society, he is a multi-county Chess Champion in Hillsborough, Polk, and Pinellas counties. For his volunteerism, Tritiya has contributed over 100 hours of volunteer service, which includes working as student ambassador for Books for Africa, distributing food at Feeding Tampa Bay, and supporting school-based volunteer initiatives at Chamberlain High School and fundraising efforts at the Hillsborough Education Foundation, among his numerous accomplishments.
Suma Gadde from Hillsborough High School
An 18-year-old senior at Hillsborough High School, Suma Gadde founded the nonprofit Create for Kids, an organization dedicated to promoting creativity and inspiring children in hospital settings and underfunded communities through cards and craft kits. She manages more than 15,000 volunteers, has organized more than 60,000 activity kits for pediatric cancer patients, and raised more than $100,000 in donations to hospitals across the world. Outside of school, Suma has provided arts and crafts projects and care packages to patients at several Tampa Bay area hospitals and organized a 5K charity run for Moffitt Cancer Center, raising $5,000 for cancer research. A recipient of the Gold Medal Presidential Volunteer Service Award, Suma balances her academics and community service with being captain of the swim team, a tutor, an intern at Moffitt, and a microbiology lab assistant at USF.
Success Despite Difficult Odds
Alidy Clark from Ferrell Girls Preparatory Academy
A sixth grader at Ferrell Girls Preparatory Academy, 11-year-old Alidy Clark lost her father at a very young age, overcame being bullied, and faced other personal and family challenges to become a bright and driven student, exceptional leader, and dedicated community volunteer. In addition to volunteering at the Humane Society walking dogs, she makes and sells her own candles and worked diligently to challenge herself academically to gain admission to Ferrell Girls Preparatory in Tampa, leading her to receive an award this academic year. Alidy also participates in three clubs and participates in community work. Most importantly, Alidy puts family above herself. After her mom developed a medical condition and had to stop teaching, Alidy took on added responsibilities in their home, enabling her mom to take another job, serving as an inspiration to others.
Malia Kirschman from Steinbrenner High School
A senior at Steinbrenner High School, 18-year-old Malia Kirschman was diagnosed with a dangerous form of bone cancer while in middle school four years ago. Despite eight months of high-dose chemotherapy and multiple surgeries, she walked 3 miles around the oncology unit at Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital in socks, with the IV pole in tow, to further her recovery. Malia has also served on the hospital's Advisory Council for 3 years, volunteered once a week at Tampa General Hospital, and was accepted into the Ryan Nece Foundation's Student Service Program, where she participates in various service projects. During her junior year at Steinbrenner, Malia was awarded the Anne Frank Humanitarian Award by the Florida Holocaust Museum for her service to the community.
Interested in all the details about the latest BOCC meeting? Here is a full recap.
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