Celebrating 150 years of The City Beautiful

2024 MLK Humanitarians

The Mayor’s Youth Humanitarians are 28 outstanding community youth who exemplify the ideals embraced by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. through their character and leadership.

These students exemplify the ideals of Dr. King that our city and our MLK Commission believe in. The student winners were selected for the honor based on the content of their character and service to others in the community.

Jefry Cano - Acceleration East High School

Jefry is one of the most respectful, kind, inclusive, and humble student’s. Jefry speaks words of encouragement and support to other students and tries his best to do the right thing, provide motivation and influence others in a positive way.

Samuel Cardenas Sandrea - Acceleration West High School

Samuel is a high achieving self-starter whose daily actions demonstrates what it means to be a resilient, dedicated and resourceful student.

Colin Poon - Apopka HS

Colin subscribes to the ideals that Dr. King fought for. Dr. King once said “darkness can not drive out darkness, only light can do that.”

Monique Heelam - Boone High School

Monique is an exemplar of dedication, compassion, and advocacy for social justice. Her unwavering commitment to positive change in her community is truly inspiring.

Sophie Porzi - Colonial High School

Sophie is devoted to her education and has a rich extracurricular life, including her passion for the violin.

Ella Binyam - Cornerstone Charter Academy

Ella is a student who specializes in biomedical sciences and has a strong interest in audiology

Musu Sheriff - Cypress Creek High School

Musu has not only demonstrated a commitment to social justice, equality and inclusion but also has shown a deep passion for leadership and community involvement.

Vrajesh Patel - Dr. Phillips High School

With a heart for service and a readiness to volunteer, Vrajesh exemplifies the qualities that Martin Luther King Jr. espoused.

Carlos Nunez-Sosa - East River High School

Carlos embodies so many of the qualities for which we celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He cares deeply for his community, is a natural leader, inspiring others to follow his quiet dedication but most importantly is kind to all of humanity

Kennedy Whitley - Edgewater High School

Kennedy is a proven leader and powerful force for progress. She is an excellent and hard-working young person, who pushes the boundaries in every aspect of her life to hugely enrich her opportunities.

Shania Edwards - Evans High School

Shania is the definition of kindness with a zeal for helping others. She is a staple with being a leader. Her position on the Student Government Association and her various leadership roles on campus allow her to be a force that sets the tone for kindness. She greets everyone with a smile and the desire to truly make every situation better.

Samantha Galan - Freedom High School

Samantha is an exceptional student who has a clear sense of direction for her life. She is a high achieving student who takes rigorous classes, such as having a schedule with dual enrollment and AP classes, while blending it with her passions.

Jose Pino - Horizon High School

Jose is a charismatic and determined student who is well-known on our campus for his positive attitude. Jose is trilingual; he speaks English, Spanish, and Portuguese.

Kaleb Priester - Jones High School

Kaleb honors the legacy of Dr. King through his acts of leadership and service.

Maria Perez Tirado - Lake Buena Vista High School

Maria always strives to treat everyone respectfully and equally, regardless of their race, ethnicity, gender or background. Understanding that diversity and inclusiveness brings people together, Maria volunteers in community-building events such as cultural events and park clean ups; she has volunteered in inclusion events such as Hispanic Heritage Month Celebrations and volunteers at the Rosen JC

Anneliz Border-Rodriguez - Lake Nona High School

As the daughter of two educators in OCPS, Anneliz has demonstrated that she is an exceptional young lady that is throughout her high school career making an impact on her community for the better.

Anderson Dakota Jean-Louis - Lake Nona High School

Anderson is intelligent, tenacious and powerful. Academically, she has consistently demonstrated her ability to excel in rigorous classes. She ranks among the top of her graduating class with a GPA of 4.50.

Martain Grant - Oak Ridge High School

Martain is the epitome of Dr. Martin Luther King’s dream. Although he is actively involved as the founder and president of the Black Student Union, president of the L.I.F.E. Mentoring Group, and president of the Senior Class, he never misses the opportunity to lend his hand to make his community better.

Ashala Conway - Ocoee High School

Ashala’s academic excellence is reflected throughout her transcript maintaining a 4.52 weighted grade point average.

Andresly Sojo Garcia - Olympia High School

Andresly was new to Olympia and immediately wanted to get involved and find out how to support the school. She teamed up with our Athletics department, and has taken control of their website, social media, and video recording.

Gabriella Jolie Gibbs - Sheeler High School

Gabriella Gibbs has a huge passion for helping others, especially children. Gabby has been employed with the City of Orlando Parks and Recreation for the last five years.

Channing Warren - Timber Creek High School

Channing has continued to challenge herself academically & in athletics.
She is able to manage her time in order to have success both on and off the court.

Tierney Pettway - University High School

Tierney is an exemplar definition of the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr., especially his passion for equality and the importance of education.

Aliyah Johnson - Wekiva High School

Aliyah embodies someone that continues to rise above their situation, to serve and uplift her community.

Ashlynne Graham - West Orange High School

Ashlynne is very dedicated and responsible. Her dedication to academics is both impressive and inspiring, and she stops at nothing to accomplish goals.

Jenna Singh - Windermere High School

Jenna is a testament to the power of compassion, empathy, and steadfast dedication to justice. Her commitment to aiding those around her, regardless of their race, ethnicity, appearance, or belief system, is a clear reflection of her inclusive and generous spirit. She is the beacon of hope and support.

Sophia Johnson - Winter Park High School

Sophia has excelled in her academic and leadership endeavors. She is passionately involved in community service through the school’s Peer Inclusion Team and Winter Park Public Library, coordinating education events for youth and teens.