Senior Sofia Smith Honored as Emily Couric Leadership Award Finalist, Wins Scholarship

We’re proud to share that Tandem Friends senior Sofia S was honored this week as a finalist for The Emily Couric Leadership Scholarship Award given annually by The Emily Couric Leadership Forum. The eleven local leadership award finalists (one from each local high school) were honored in person on April 27 at the annual awards luncheon - check out NBC29's video of the event. All finalists received an $18,000 scholarship, and two larger scholarships are awarded as well, the Leadership Award, and a Merit Award.

Each year's nominee is nominated by our Upper School faculty who mentioned Sofia's "academic success, leadership in the school, leadership in the classroom and the personal qualities of risk taker, decision maker, opinion leader, confident bridge builder, and catalyst for change." Here's what the Emily Couric Leadership Forum shared about Sofia: "Whether as a varsity volleyball captain or conducting research as a material science intern at the University of Virginia, Sofia’s leadership is deeply felt in the community. She founded the Art for Charity club to merge her love for creative expression with community service. She mobilized rapid support for the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank during an urgent Snap benefits crisis. As a certified yoga teacher and mentor, she works to create inclusive environments where others feel seen and confident in their own uniqueness. Sofia aims to carry this compassionate drive into the field of biology and nutrition, where she is determined to ensure universal access to healthy, high-quality food." Sofia also heads up the Geeky Girls group, empowering local elementary school girls with a love of STEM, and is a passionate member of Science Olympiad. Sofia will be attending UVA in the fall to study neuroscience/biology and nutrition. Congratulations, Sofia!

Watch this video of Sofia shared by The Emily Couric Leadership Forum. 

The Emily Couric Leadership Forum "established the Emily Couric Leadership Scholarship to be awarded annually to a senior girl attending any high school in Charlottesville or Albemarle. The goal is to acknowledge and encourage young women in leadership roles in government and the community. Each school is asked to nominate a senior girl who demonstrates leadership in her school and the community. A selection committee comprised of community leaders interviews the nominees and makes the final selection." The Emily Couric Leadership Forum itself honors the memory of State Senator Emily Couric, who modeled a strong commitment to learning and service. Her many contributions to the community encouraged all women to "adopt an active role in government, public issues, and policy debates affecting their communities, and to inspire young women to pursue activities which will enable them to become effective leaders." The group has awarded over $2.4M to over 228 young women since the scholarships began in 2001, and awarded $250,000 this year.