High School junior Anna Katz and High School teacher Lauren Keener have been selected to participate in the 2013 Bezos Scholars Program, an honor shared by only a dozen other students and teachers across the country.
They were selected to participate in a year-long leadership program, which begins with a week at the Aspen Ideas Festival in Colorado this summer.
The program was created in 2005 by the Bezos Family Foundation (endowed by the founders of Amazon.com). Katz is the first Shaker student to apply to the program and only the second student from Ohio to be accepted.
Katz was chosen for the program based on her academic achievements, community involvement, teacher recommendations, and an essay she wrote on a topic she is passionate about: Equal access to health care and education for women and children.
At school, Katz is involved with PATH (Pledge Against the Hate), Take Action (student tutoring), and Model UN. She also volunteers frequently with an art therapist at Judson Retirement Community.
Keener was selected for her leadership and mentoring skills and for her ability to champion big ideas. At the High School, she works with students in a small group setting as an intervention specialist.
At the Aspen Ideas Festival, Katz and Keener will have an opportunity to interact with visionaries from around the globe, including world-renowned artists, journalists, political figures, entrepreneurs and scientists.
During the 2013-14 school year, each student-educator team will apply for a $1,000 grant to create a Local Ideas Festival focused on issues relevant to their community.
Katz and Keener have requested input from community members to help them with this process, by completing a brief online survey.
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