NEWARK, N.J., Feb. 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Prudential
Financial today announced its inaugural class of Prudential
Emerging Visionaries — 25 young people from across the country with
an inspiring commitment to improving the lives of others.
Prudential Emerging Visionaries recognizes young leaders ages
14-18 who have fresh, innovative solutions to pressing financial
and societal challenges in their communities. The program is a
collaboration between Prudential Financial and Ashoka, a leading
social impact organization, with advisory support from the
Financial Health Network, an authority on financial health and
longtime partner of The Prudential Foundation. It's an evolution of
the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, the country's largest
youth recognition program, which for 26 years honored more than
150,000 outstanding youth volunteers.
"Emerging Visionaries is another way Prudential is demonstrating
its commitment to our purpose: to make lives better by solving the
financial challenges of our changing world," said Chairman and CEO
Charles Lowrey. "The students we're
honoring have a sense of possibility that drives them to look
beyond themselves. Their vision and dedication are key to creating
fully inclusive communities, and we are humbled and inspired by
their work."
That work includes addressing needs created by the COVID-19
pandemic, combating economic inequality, advocating for inclusion
and closing the digital divide. This inaugural group of young
leaders was selected based on four main criteria: their solution is
innovative; it can create meaningful impact in the future and can
scale to a wider community; it demonstrates a deep understanding of
the issue; and it inspires the visionary to lead or take action and
motivates others to do the same.
Each of the 25 winners will receive $5,000 in funding as well as an invitation to
participate in an awards summit from April
23-26, 2022. The summit will include a lively agenda packed
with skills development workshops, coaching sessions, networking
opportunities and special recognition events.
Select winners will also have an opportunity to participate in a
pitch-off where a grand prize winner will receive an additional
$10,000 in funding. What's more,
Prudential employees will vote to name an Employees' Choice Award
winner, who will receive an additional $5,000.
2022 Prudential Emerging Visionaries
Applicants focused their projects on two categories: Financial
Solutions for a Changing World and Societal Solutions for a
Changing World.
Financial Solutions for a Changing World Award
Winners
Ella Gupta, 17, of
Raleigh, North Carolina, started
the "Initiative for Financial Literacy Exploration" to address
gender economic inequality by helping young women gain
self-confidence and invest in themselves through financial
education.
Isaac Hertenstein, 15, of
Greencastle, Indiana, founded
"Students Teaching Finance," an initiative to promote financial
inclusion in his rural community by empowering high school-aged
changemakers to teach the importance of financial education to K-8
students.
Rachel Holmes, 18, of
San Jose, California, started
"Black Girls Mean Business," a career development and networking
program for Black high school girls that fosters the skills and
confidence needed to become successful in their careers —
ultimately increasing their representation in the corporate
world.
Sahana Mantha, 15, of
Charlotte, North Carolina,
co-founded "Foundation for Girls," which connects mothers
experiencing homelessness with long-term coaches who accompany them
on their journey to financial health and economic security.
Faaris Zuberi, 17, of Rockville, Maryland, is a leader of "Financial
Literacy Introduction Program," which offers financial literacy to
student members of the Youth Economic Initiative — the largest
coalition of economics clubs worldwide — to equip students with the
tools and knowledge they need to prepare for their futures.
Societal Solutions for a Changing World Award
Winners
Jonah Basi, 17, of
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, founded
"MangroLife" to restore South
Florida's waterways. Since October
2020, Jonah has organized 90 community events ranging from
trash cleanups to park restoration projects that have removed 1,800
pounds of trash from local ecosystems, while planting hundreds of
mangrove trees across South
Florida.
Amelie Beck, 15, of
Louisville, Kentucky, co-founded
"MedTechConnect," a health accessibility initiative that
offers senior citizens personalized training, support and
simplified technology solutions.
Jordyn Cambeiro, 16, of
Henderson, Nevada, is the creator
of "Empowering Immigrants." The organization helps Spanish-speaking
students access supplementary language-learning resources to grow
their English proficiency.
Esther Chan, 15, of
Honolulu, Hawaii, founded "Cyber
Safe Seniors," an initiative that helps older adults protect
themselves from cybercrime. She has partnered with local nonprofits
and senior centers to offer video courses and more than 40
resources on staying safe online.
Kayli Joy Cooper, 17, of
Studio City, California, created
"Girl Well" to make self-care accessible for teenage girls facing
displacement, transition, or homelessness by curating self-care
kits that emphasize physical, emotional and mental wellness.
Sayers Grooms, 16, of Gainesville, Florida, created "Watch Me
Run," a nonprofit that enables those living with impaired
balance access to Frame Running, an innovative sport that helps
people with disabilities run freely.
Isabella Hanson, 16, of
Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, started
"I Matter" to give young people a platform to advocate for social
justice and equality through creative expression. The project's
poetry and art contests invite students of all backgrounds to share
powerful messages about racial justice and advocate for change.
Aaron Li, 17, of
Portland, Oregon, is the
co-founder of "Project Lotus," an initiative that destigmatizes
mental health and provides culturally competent care for Asian
American and Pacific Islander communities.
Chris Matthews, 14, of
McDonough, Georgia, is the creator
of the "Blanket Box Project," a social enterprise that provides
free blankets to children dealing with challenging situations and
empowers young changemakers to share these blankets with others
facing hard times.
Arun Moorthy, 16, of
Scottsdale, Arizona, created
"HealthAI," a collection of mobile health care apps that tackle
health inequity by providing education, affordable screenings and
access to preventative medicine.
Naomi Porter, 17, of
Rancho Palos Verdes, California,
founded "EntrepreYOUership" to make entrepreneurial education more
accessible, equipping the next generation of innovators with skills
and startup funds to launch their own businesses.
Tavish Sharma, 18, of
Libertyville, Illinois, founded "Solve Hunger Corp," a free
mobile app that connects people to food pantries and soup kitchens,
allowing users to contribute money, food or time. Tavish and his
team have served more than 85,000 people through 50 food banks,
pantries and kitchens in 13 states.
Anya Shukla, 18, of
Bellevue, Washington, co-created
"The Colorization Collective." Her initiative created "by teens of
color for teens of color" promotes diversity in the arts by
providing young artists with opportunities to showcase their work,
build their professional skills, and get matched with mentors who
look like them.
Sriya Tallapragada, 15, of
New Providence, New Jersey,
created "Girls Who STEAM." The organization works to close the
gender gap in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and
Math) fields, empowering more than 4,000 young women to pursue
these subjects through creative workshops and lifelong mentorship
opportunities.
Jonathan Tamen, 17, of
Miami Beach, Florida, started
"Helping Hands MB" to provide 3D-printed prosthetic solutions for
children in Haiti. The goal of
Helping Hands MB is to reduce shame and stigma surrounding
disabilities and give children greater mobility.
Khloe Thompson, 14, of
Yorba Linda, California, started
"PeachTree Pads," a reusable, eco-friendly alternative to
traditional menstruation products. PeachTree Pads tackles feminine
hygiene waste while also providing an all-natural pad product.
Arnav Tripathi, 17, of
Cumming, Georgia, founded the
"Georgia Homework Help Hotline" to help individuals obtain their
GEDs. Through the free website, students can live chat with a
tutor, submit a problem for help or sign up for weekly
tutoring.
Stephanie Wang, 17, of
Katy, Texas, founded "Project
Unmasked" to increase students' access to public health education
through educational resources and advocacy work. So far it has
reached more than 70,000 people.
Arthur Wang, 17, of
Columbia, Maryland, started the
"COVID Teacher Care Kits Initiative," which has delivered more than
1,300 care kits to teachers and staff. The kits offer practical and
moral support and include colorful, course-themed masks and
accessories.
Elise Zeigler, 17, of
St. Louis, Missouri, established
"Selah Textiles," a social enterprise aimed at creating financial
opportunities for women immigrants, refugees and underserved
individuals through the production of screen-printed textiles.
For more information about Prudential Emerging Visionaries and
to learn more about their stories, visit
prudential.com/emergingvisionaries.
About Prudential Financial
Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE: PRU), a financial wellness leader
and premier active global investment manager, has operations in
the United States, Asia, Europe
and Latin America. Prudential's
diverse and talented employees help to make lives better by
creating financial opportunity for more people. Prudential's iconic
Rock symbol has stood for strength, stability, expertise and
innovation for more than a century. For more information, please
visit news.prudential.com.
About Ashoka
Ashoka is the largest global network of
leading social entrepreneurs — individuals with new ideas to
systemically address the world's biggest challenges and the
entrepreneurial skill to transform those ideas into national,
regional and global social impact. Over 40 years, Ashoka has
supported more than 3,600 social entrepreneurs in 90 countries with
solutions addressing society's most pressing issues. Ashoka's
vision is a world in which Everyone is a Changemaker — a society
that responds quickly and effectively to challenges, and where
every individual has the freedom, confidence and societal support
to address any social problem. For more information, visit
ashoka.org.
View original content to download
multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/prudential-financial-names-its-first-ever-prudential-emerging-visionaries-301480966.html
SOURCE Prudential Financial, Inc.