Led by: Pearl Sawhney, Charlotte Levitre, Charlotte O’Packi The purpose of our project was to create a fun environment for our community and support kids who were going through hard times. We found Why Me & Sherry’s House through Charlotte O’s school, as she had heard about the house and thought it would be a good idea if we contributed something to it. Before volunteering, we emailed the organization and met up with them to discuss our plan. Our original plan was to do activities with the hospice children outdoors, however due to rain we had to work around our plan and come up with a new one. The children had so much fun and we were able to create a bond with them and make a difference to the community.

Led by: Caylee Smith, Madison Balboni, Andrew Brennick and William Lahar The goal of this project was to elevate the garden at Nipmuc Regional High School run by the special ed department. Tenth graders Caylee Smith, Madison Balboni, Wiliam Lahar and ninth grader Andrew Bennick worked to better the school's cafeteria options by means of products from the garden on campus. They reached out to many local suppliers to gather donated gardening supplies for the special ed department to use for future many seasons to come. In doing so, they hope this impacts not only the garden, but also their peers being fueled by its produce.

Led by: Charlotte Amos, Eden Gluckin, Lyra Saldanha, Younis Metwaly The main purpose of this project was to create and perform a community project to help with an ongoing problem we identified. Our group decided that one main problem in our community was clothing shortages for teens who are less fortunate. So, we ran clothing drives in Notre Dame Academy in Worcester (Charlotte’s school), and Whitinsville Christian School (Eden’s School). We then donated these clothes to Andy’s Attic in Worcester, and Northern Thrift in Coventry (RI), two organizations that help with distributing clothing to those who need it. We were honored to have done this service knowing that we were able to contribute a lot towards providing clothes to the less fortunate, and are glad to have made an impact to help our community. It’s also helped us in understanding what it takes to lead a project like this, and how important organization and communication is.

Led by the BVYLA MS Cohort This year’s middle school student leaders embarked on a hands-on leadership journey through the planning and execution of STEAM Unfiltered, a student-led conference hosted at Worcester Polytechnic Institute and supported by a grant from the Greater Worcester Community Foundation. Throughout the project, students moved from participants to professional organizers, taking ownership of the event’s planning, design, and delivery. Working in specialized leadership teams, students developed the STEAM Unfiltered brand, supported outreach and registration, managed budget details, coordinated event logistics, and helped shape an inclusive program that reflected the interests, backgrounds, and abilities of attendees. Their work created a high-energy conference experience centered on peer-to-peer leadership, hands-on learning, and authentic representation in STEM. Through this culminating project, BVYLA middle schoolers strengthened real-world skills in communication, collaboration, budgeting, problem-solving, and event planning while helping create a meaningful and engaging STEM experience for their peers.

Led by: Zetsion, Tori, Brielle & Anaya The goal of this project was to build a community service experience rooted in diversity and cultural appreciation. Together, we developed the idea of cooking and handing out authentic meals drawing from the food traditions of Ethiopia, Ghana, and the Dominican Republic to unhoused members of our community. This was a powerful chance to do more than just feed those in need — it was an opportunity to honor diverse cultures through one of the most universal human connections — a shared meal.