Inspired by Mr. Scheidel’s passion for volunteerism and his strong belief in promoting community involvement, the Scheidel Foundation initiated the Community Leadership in Action Award, given annually to a student enrolled at Florida State College at Jacksonville. This award recognizes extraordinary student volunteers who, through their work with non-profit agencies in the FSCJ area, have focused on the expansion of opportunities for those less fortunate.
For more information on the application process please visit FSCJ’s scholarship page.J
2018 Community Leadership in Action Scholar Profiles
Ashley Cetin (Winner)
When the community service club at Ashley Cetin’s high school lost its teacher sponsor and its student leaders graduated, she took it upon herself to revive the club from the ground up. Ashley has brought that level of dedication to her many other volunteer activities, from raising money in Kenya for a school house and volunteering at an orphanage, to teaching art in schools via the nonprofit organizations Cathedral Arts Project (“CAP”) and Hope at Hand. CAP brings visual and performing arts instruction to schools in Duval County, Florida, while Hope at Hand provides art and poetry sessions to at-risk youth populations. Ashley worked to bring CAP instruction to Hope at Hand youth, and her initiative was rewarded with an internship at Hope at Hand upon graduation from high school. She then served as Hope Club Coordinator, organizing art clubs at local high schools and helping with a summer art camp for foster children. Ashley is now planning to study for a career in expressive art therapy for trauma sufferers. Her commitment to service and healing are emblematic of a Herbert W. Scheidel Community Leadership in Action Scholar.
Jessica Lucas (Finalist)
For six years, Jessica Lucas worked with the I’m a Star Foundation, which draws student servant leaders from middle and high schools across Duval County to participate in volunteer activities to improve their communities. With I’m a Star, Jessica developed a healthy living curriculum entitled “Teens Teaching Teens,” to help students adopt healthier lifestyles and decrease childhood obesity. She facilitated the Teens Teaching Teens classes and served as a presenter for the I’m a Star youth-led obesity prevention summit for over 1,000 students. She also helped to plan, develop, and implement a similar project for the 1,900 homeless students in Duval County public schools. Her work led to over $60,000 in donations for this project. Overall, her work reached over 3,500 program participants, and helped the I’m a Star Foundation win a nationwide, first-place Childhood Obesity Prevention Award from the United States Conference of Mayors. She and her fellow student program volunteers also received the opportunity to travel to Washington, D.C., to speak with the Surgeon General. Jessica was also selected to be a Student Leader by the Bank of America Charitable Foundation; she received a paid eight-week internship with Communities in Schools Jacksonville, a student-dropout prevention program.
Kaw Lahpai (Finalist)
At Jacksonville Kachin Baptist Church, Kaw Lahpai, an immigrant refugee from Myanmar, saw a great need to help welcome newly arrived refugees to the United States. Drawing on her personal experience, she energetically dedicated herself to assisting immigrants in overcoming cultural and language barriers to obtain educations, jobs, and careers. She continues to serve as an interpreter and volunteer in helping refugees pass driving tests, fill out job applications, and navigate their new lives. Now a student at Florida State College at Jacksonville, Kaw maintains her dedication to assisting resettling immigrants who seek higher education.
Watch Video of a Previous Herbert W. Scheidel Community Leader in Action Award Scholar: