Philanthropy Tank has announced the finalists for its 2022 program. The nonprofit challenges, empowers and equips the next generation of “changemakers” to develop and execute sustainable initiatives and solutions to solve problems in their communities.
The nonprofit received hundreds of applications from students between eighth and 12th grade from across Palm Beach County. The application requires students to submit a philanthropic idea that directly addresses issues in their community. The students will present their ideas to a group of philanthropist investors, who can award each project up to $15,000 in funding to launch and implement the program. This year’s philanthropist investors are Aisha Ali, Caroline Cummings Rafferty, Frances Fisher and Tom Vining. The students will also receive one-to-one mentoring and support.
Three Wellington teens and two Royal Palm Beach teens are among 15 students chosen as finalists across six projects:
• Drop the Vape — Tessie Gordon from Wellington High School is behind Drop the Vape, a program that aims to decrease the number of teen vape users in Palm Beach County by establishing a new educational course for students caught with vape devices at school, offering a text-to-quit program for students hoping to stop vaping, and advocating for an increase in the proximity between vape shops and schools.
• Traveling Comforts — Karimah Khoram of Royal Palm Beach from the PACE Center for Girls proposed this project. At any given time in Palm Beach County, there are approximately 1,000 kids in foster care. Typically, when a child is removed from his or her home, they leave with the clothes on their backs and nothing else. Traveling Comforts is a program that aims to provide foster kids with a personal travel/duffle bag, a cozy throw blanket, a toiletry bag and a stationery kit to comfort them through transitional situations.
• Sharing the Arts — Shreya Srinivasan (Wellington), Alyssa Jean Louis (Royal Palm Beach), Ave Goorbarry (Lake Worth) and Nathan Goldin (Jupiter) from the Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts proposed Sharing the Arts, a program that aims to support low-income middle school students exploring their interest in the arts by offering workshops, supplies and mentorship.
• Bridging the Gap — Sahil Bhandary (Wellington), Duaa Ali (Palm Beach Gardens), Jayantha Kantamneni (Jupiter) and Cooper Weisman (West Palm Beach) from the Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts proposed Bridging the Gap, which plans to work with elementary and middle schools in Palm Beach County to provide school supplies to underprivileged schools.
Other finalists include Growing Native Oases Made for Engagement (GNOME) by Mallory Thomas (Boca Raton), Anna Jarvis (Boca Raton), Elise Sigel (Highland Beach) and Alyssa Jiggetts (Coconut Creek) from FAU High School, and Green Garments by Amelia Williams (Delray Beach) from the Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts.
The finalists will make their presentations in a live recorded event that will be posted on Philanthropy Tank’s web site as well as its Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn pages on April 11. This is Philanthropy Tank’s seventh year operating this unique program in Palm Beach County. To date, Philanthropy Tank student-led programs in Palm Beach County and Baltimore have impacted more than 300,000 lives.
Visit www.philanthropytank.org to learn more.
