Tyler Belliston

Tyler puts endless amounts of positive energy into everything that he does, and always looks out for anyone that could use a helping hand. He has been involved in several extra curricular activities including Speech Competitions, School Plays, Science Olympiad, and National Junior Honor Society.

  • Home Town Wasilla
  • School District Matanuska Susitna Borough
  • Award Category Role Model

Taralyn Gwynn

Taralyn has recently started a new life with a loving foster family. She has also started attending a new middle school in the Valley. She shows great resiliency, and has developed strength and coping skills through adversity.

  • Home Town Palmer
  • School District Matanuska-Susitna SD
  • Award Category Phoenix

Charly Rentz

Charly always approaches all of her activities with all of her effort and charisma. She has been a member of National Junior Honor Society, Letters of Love, our CMS Morning Crew (announcement crew), MSBSD speech and debate competitions, Agents for Change, Tri-M (music honor society), and the school’s QPR (suicide prevention program) team.

  • Home Town Palmer
  • School District MSBSD
  • Award Category Role Model

Lacie Freeman

Lacie is great at delegating responsibility so those around her are able to shine as well. She is compassionate, and her passion for life is palpable. She is involved in Agents for Change, Tri-M (Modern Music Masters) Honor Society, and National Junior Honor Society as the Vice President. She tries to take leadership roles both in and outside of these activities whenever she is given the opportunity.

  • Home Town Palmer
  • School District MSBSD
  • Award Category Role Model

Braiden Owen

Braiden always brings a positive attitude and smile on his face to school, along with his humorous personality. He is eager to help others and is a prime example for those in his grade.

  • Home Town Palmer
  • School District Mat-Su School District
  • Award Category Role Model

Kaylee Rose Phillips

Kaylee is a self-starter, independent, and loves to serve others. No matter what group she finds herself in, she finds ways to serve others. All of the projects that she has been involved in address social problems and needs in both Fairbanks and Rampart.

  • Home Town Fairbanks
  • School District Fairbanks North Star Borough
  • Award Category Humanitarian, Role Model

Jackson Petrie

Jackson has been a great team player in all the sports he has participated in, from t-ball to floor hockey. He has always been supportive of other teammates, always cheering them on, whether he was playing or on the bench. He helps others when needed without prompting and truly cares about his teammates.

  • Home Town Palmer
  • School District MSBSD
  • Award Category Humanitarian

Emily Gage

Emily worked with her friend to create a Girl Talk chapter for our local middle school. She is a leader within the group and organizes the weekly lessons as well as sets up volunteer activities within the community.

  • Home Town Wasilla
  • School District Matanuska Susitna Borough School District
  • Award Category Role Model

Abigail Couch

Abigail participates in extracurricular activities such as cheerleading and basketball, while also maintaining her GPA. Her drive to continue to improve her grades after family trauma and emotional stress is evident in her work ethic.

  • Home Town Wasilla
  • School District Matanuska Susitna Borough School District
  • Award Category Phoenix

Kiara Johnson

Kiara is an active participant on the cheerleading squad. She brings cheer everywhere she goes. She also was selected as a Sister School Exchange participant and will be traveling to a remote Alaska village to experience the culture and life in rural Alaska. Kiara was selected out of a large pool of applicants due to her positive attitude, willingness to learn and try new things, and her leadership qualities.

  • Home Town Wasilla
  • School District MSBSD
  • Award Category Phoenix, Role Model

Shayla Titus

Shayla is a youth leader at school. She helps kids her age with peer pressure, she listens and gives a shoulder to cry on. She was given an award for being most respectful at the last school awards assembly. Last month, she was invited to attend the State initiative “Lead On” campaign.

  • Home Town White Mountain
  • School District Bering Straits School District
  • Award Category Dreamer, Role Model

Makenzie Edgar

Makenzie is a student leader in class on a daily basis. She also takes initiative to participate in activities that take place outside of school, such as a member of the CMS basketball team as well as participating in a district wide junior cooking competition. After winning the Junior Cooking competition, Makenzie and her group were featured at a school district meeting and the district used her recipe to create a lunch menu for one day to serve to all students across the Mat-Su school district.

  • Home Town Palmer
  • School District Matanuska- Susitna Borough School District
  • Award Category Role Model

Liam Atkin

Liam is not only an extremely hard worker, and a model student who strives to give his best in any and all activities, he is a leader. He is also very included in his school, sports, and community outreach.

  • Home Town Wasilla
  • School District Mat-Su Borough School District
  • Award Category Role Model

Verina (Rina) Ukatish

Rina is a role model and a strong, quiet leader in school, extra-curricular activities, the community, and at home. She has worked in many youth and community programs including the Nanwalek Summer Youth Program, the Kenatize Tribe Workforce Intern Program at their Head Start Program, many Project GRAD sponsored activities including Summer College Institute, Career Institute, and Leadership Institute. She has been active in Kenai Peninsula Native Youth Leadership Program and served as the Nanwalek KPNYL Student Advisor Assistant and one of their representatives at the Alaska Federation of Natives Conference in 2016. She also attended the UNITY National Native Youth Leadership conference in Oklahoma through KPNYL, a gathering of two thousand native youth and leaders.

  • Home Town Nanwalek
  • School District Kenai Peninsula Borough School District
  • Award Category Humanitarian, Role Model

Kail Davey

Kail is chosen as a leader among his peers and teachers frequently have him to lead, help, or facilitate during classes. At home, he continues to help his grandparents. He exhibits a great sense of humor and an exceptional ability to see the best in every situation.

  • Home Town Palmer
  • School District Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District
  • Award Category Phoenix

Kaylynn Zagyva

Kaylynn leads a Girl Talk group at Colony Middle School. The group concentrates on anti-bullying, girls supporting each other, and increasing confidence in teen girls. She is also involved in community programs like Special Santa, a fundraiser for My House, and volunteers at the North Star Vet Clinic. She participates in all these activities despite recently having surgery for a brain tumor which caused her to have to relearn much of her speech.

  • Home Town Wasilla
  • School District Mat-Su Borough School District
  • Award Category Phoenix

Mia Weiss

Mia organized a school group called Letters of Love. The Letters of Love project addresses a social problem in our local, national, and global community, that there are people in the world who need to hear words of encouragement from someone else.

  • Home Town Palmer
  • School District Matanuska Susitna Borough School District
  • Award Category Role Model

Kelly Mauricio

Kelly has over 300 hours of various community service hours, such as providing support to special needs students during and after school. She has conducted numerous color guards, which provide support across the Anchorage community. She is selfless in her commitment to the community and her school by providing support for teachers and parents during conferences.

  • Home Town Anchorage
  • School District Anchorage
  • Award Category Role Model

Cook Inlet Academy High School and Junior High students

The students at Cook Inlet Academy reach out to their entire community. Their Fall Workathon program targets the elderly in their community by helping them get ready for winter. The local Crisis Pregnancy Center holds a pie auction every year, they raised $40,000 for community needs this year with the help of our students. The school holds a Spring Carnival each year and the students are an integral part of it.

  • Home Town Soldotna
  • School District Private
  • Award Category Humanitarian

Rylee Mcintosh

Rylee supported the Magic Yarn Project.  She and the crew made wigs for children with cancer. Over the years, Rylee has continued to grow her range of efforts and services, always shining light into the community and finding ways to be a positive contributor.

  • Home Town Palmer
  • School District Matanuska Susitna Borough School District
  • Award Category Role Model