The Jefferson Awards Students in Action (SIA) program is proud to announce that School of the Arts from North Charleston, SC has been selected as the South Carolina recipient of the award Outstanding Service by a High School and will represent our state at the Jefferson Awards’ National Ceremony and Gala in Washington, DC, taking place June 16-18, 2014. This school was selected as Most Outstanding at the 2014 Regional Competition and Celebration of Service held at Lowcountry Tech Academy in Charleston, SC on Friday, April 11 for best showcasing the Students in Action program’s service and volunteerism goals, as well as for their philanthropic contribution to the community and to their school. They have helped to pave the way for greater volunteerism throughout South Carolina.
During the 2013-2014 school year, the SIA team at School of the Arts has done many community service projects in support of local nonprofits both with monetary and in-kind support. They use social media to attract attention to their work, partner with various clubs and organizations within the school to increase their impact, and have tracked over 15,100 service hours within their school community.
The other participating high schools in this year’s competition were James Island Charter High School in James Island and Ashley Ridge High School in Summerville. This event and the Students in Action program in SC is sponsored by Deloitte Services LP and Blue Cross Blue Shield of South Carolina and is supported by the City of Charleston, the City of North Charleston, Charleston County School District and Dorchester School District Two.
The Jefferson Awards Students in Action program is currently operating in over 325 high schools nationwide in 10 regions: South Carolina, Chicago, Delaware, Central Florida, Indianapolis, Minneapolis-St. Paul, New Jersey, Pittsburgh, the San Francisco Bay Area, and Toledo, Ohio. From the schools selected at each regional competition in these areas, the Jefferson Awards will select one outstanding high school as the national honoree. Each regional high school, along with the national honoree, will be showcased as part of the National Jefferson Awards Ceremony in Washington, DC in June.
About the Jefferson Awards
The Jefferson Awards for Public Service was founded in 1972 by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Senator Robert Taft, Jr, and Sam Beard as the Nobel Prize for public service and volunteerism. The mission of the Jefferson Awards is to honor Americans who have performed outstanding public service and to inspire others to follow their example.
The Students in Action (SIA) program was created in partnership with Deloitte with the aggressive goal of helping to double volunteerism in America’s high schools. SIA’s strategy is to create Jefferson Awards’ youth leadership teams in each high school that celebrate great volunteers, inspire others to get involved, and help raise additional resources to expand volunteer activities in areas of need.