Student Leadership Network

06/17/2026

We are so proud to celebrate the seniors as they step into the next chapter of their lives - whether that’s , a workforce program, or another exciting opportunity! 🎓✨

We’re excited to spotlight a few of our seniors who are headed to Women’s Colleges next year:
-Alexa, Manhattan Early College School for Advertising -> headed to Mount Holyoke College
-Meherunesa, The Young Women’s Leadership School (TYWLS) of Queens -> headed to Barnard College

Alexa and Meherunesa, we cannot wait to see everything you accomplish next!

Celebrate with us and learn more about our seniors 👉 https://www.studentleadershipnetwork.org/collegebound-month-2026/

06/16/2026

🎉 Honoring excellence in teaching at The Young Women's Leadership Schools (TYWLS)!

Student Leadership Network is proud to present the 2025-2026 April Blount Blue Ribbon Awards! The April Blount is an annual recognition given to one outstanding educator from each TYWLS school who exemplifies excellence in teaching and upholds the WholeGirl+ Education Model.

The award celebrates the legacy of the late April Blount, a phenomenal teacher and leader at TYWLS Brooklyn who brought learning to life for her students.

🏅 Congratulations to our 2025-2026 recipients:
- Marina Prakas, Special Education - Math teacher at TYWLS Astoria
- Peder Olson, English Language Arts (ELA), English as a New Langue (ENL) teacher at TYWLS Bronx
- Loran Ubriaco, History, Algebra, and Advisory teacher at TYWLS Brooklyn
- Adele Antalek, Science teacher at TYWLS Manhattan
- Danielle Dowdell, French teacher at TYWLS Queens
- Danielle Fletcher, ELA, Social Studies, and Global teacher at TYWLS Staten Island

Read more about the April Blount Award on our blog: https://www.studentleadershipnetwork.org/april-blount-awards-2026/

Student Leadership Network is thrilled to honor excellence in teaching across The Young Women's Leadership Schools (TYWLS) with the April Blount Blue Ribbon Awards.

06/16/2026

🎓Graduation season is here, and the has officially made their !
Students at the High School for Youth and Community Development (YCD) a CollegeBound Initiative (CBI) partner school in Brooklyn, NY, recently came together to celebrate !

Director of College Counseling, Alberto, helped make the event truly special - coordinating a celebration where seniors got to proudly showcase their college and plans, and cheer each other on!

A big congratulations to every senior who worked hard to get here - you earned this moment!
Celebrate with us: https://www.studentleadershipnetwork.org/collegebound-month-2026/

06/16/2026

The future is bright! 🎓✨

Seniors at the Manhattan Business Academy, a CollegeBound Initiative (CBI) partner school, recently celebrated ! They proudly crossed the stage to share their college & postsecondary decisions!

Students at Manhattan Business Academy are off to fantastic colleges and universities, some of which include Baruch College, New York University, City Tech CUNY, SUNY Oneonta, SUNY Oswego, the University of Southern California, Stony Brook University, & St. Francis College Brooklyn (just to name a few!)

Congrats, seniors! Celebrate the with us: https://www.studentleadershipnetwork.org/collegebound-month-2026/

06/12/2026

Meet Ruby - a senior graduating from The Young Women’s Leadership School (TYWLS) of Astoria. She was recently featured on Spectrum News NY1 as a NY1 Scholar Athlete! 🥎

As a freshman at The Young Women’s Leadership School (TYWLS) of Astoria, Ruby joined the softball team but ultimately quit, feeling unconfident in her abilities. However, Ruby was unwilling to give up on her softball dreams - she tried out for the softball team again during her junior year, and ultimately made the team. Now? Ruby is ending her senior year at TYWLS Astoria as team captain and starting pitcher!

Ruby’s story is a reminder to never give up on your dreams! Watch the full broadcast here: https://www.studentleadershipnetwork.org/ny1-scholar-athlete-ruby-2026/

NY1 honors scholar athlete Ruby K. from TYWLS Astoria, a Young Women's Leadership school. She came back to the sport in junior year and is now captain of the softball team.

06/12/2026

🎓 Meet Maiya - a senior graduating from Burgard High School, a CollegeBound Month Initiative (CBI) partner school in Buffalo, NY!

At Burgard, Maiya was a member of the National Honor Society, worked part-time at a pizza restaurant, AND still maintained good grades!

Maiya’s passion? Baking and experimenting with new flavors for her cupcakes and cookies! Not only that - she frequently allows her dedicated Director of College Counseling (DCC), Asheligh Worthy, to taste test her baked goods.

Now, Maiya is following her passion for baking: she plans to attend Niagara Community College SUNY Niagara for culinary arts and pastry design. Way to go, Maiya! Congratulations, Maiya!

Read more about Maiya and some of our other seniors: https://www.studentleadershipnetwork.org/collegebound-month-2026/

06/10/2026

🎓 Meet Ruby, a senior graduating from The Young Women's Leadership School (TYWLS) of Astoria who has spent her high school years giving voice to stories that matter.

This spring, Ruby earned a spot in Ithaca College's prestigious Park Scholars Program, one of the college's most competitive merit awards.

Come fall, planning to join ICTV, one of the oldest college television channels in the country, and Creative Media, a co-curricular program covering Ithaca's sports teams, all in pursuit of her dream of working in sports broadcasting.

"I am excited to be joining the Park Scholar Program at Ithaca College. I'm most looking forward to the variety of media opportunities that will immediately be available to me." -Ruby

We can’t wait to see all that you accomplish, Ruby! Learn more about Ruby’s story: https://www.studentleadershipnetwork.org/collegebound-month-2026/

06/10/2026

This spring, we had the pleasure of welcoming digital creator and author Taylor Cassidy to our annual TYWLS Glows Up event! 🌟

Taylor is known for her engaging content on Black history and fashion across TikTok and Instagram, and for being the author of “Black History is Your History” She joined us for an inspiring social media influencer panel with our 11th-grade students from The Young Women's Leadership Schools (TYWLS) in NYC.

She opened up about the importance of knowing when to rest, prioritizing what truly matters, and navigating negativity as a content creator.

TYWLS Glows Up brings together 11th graders each year for workshops and panels designed to give them the tools and confidence to share their accomplishments with pride!

Thank you, Taylor, for your investment in the next generation of leaders!

06/09/2026

It's June, and that means our seniors are just about ready to cross those graduation stages and step into the next chapter of their lives! 🎓✨

We’re celebrating all - whether that's higher education, workforce programs, or other postsecondary opportunities.

Congratulations to:
-Joseph, graduating from The Heritage School -> joining the United States Air Force
-Kyree, graduating from East Community High School #309 - New -> joining the U.S. Marine Corps

We are so proud of you both!

Keep celebrating with us:
https://www.studentleadershipnetwork.org/collegebound-month-2026/

06/09/2026

We’re excited to spotlight Dan Anderson, a math teacher at The Young Women’s Leadership School (TYWLS) of Brooklyn, who was recently featured on Chalkbeat's P.S. Weekly Podcast!

Dan shared how he brings AP Calculus to life in his teaching through real-world examples, from video games to Disney movies, and so much more.

The episode was produced by Mateo, a student at Central Park East High School, a CollegeBound Initiative (CBI) partner school!

Give it a listen! 🎙️ https://www.studentleadershipnetwork.org/tywls-brooklyn-teacher-shares-value-of-ap-calculus-on-podcast/

Dan Anderson is a math teacher at The Young Women’s Leadership School of Brooklyn (TYWLS Brooklyn), a school in our Young Women’s Leadership network. Mateo,...