UPTON – Superintendent Maureen Cohen and Athletic Director Chris Schmidt proudly announce that two Nipmuc Regional High School students have been selected as winners of the 2022-2023 Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association Community Service Challenge.
Gianna Yordanopoulos and Kylie Bodzinski attended a conference held at the High School last August that focused on mental health and the role student-athletes can play as peer leaders. The conference was organized by Dual County League athletic directors, and was attended by more than 100 DCL student-athletes.
Through their interaction with Jim Johnson, president of the KyleCares Foundation, Yordanopoulos and Bodzinski decided to start an Active Minds chapter at Nipmuc to bring awareness to mental health issues.
The MIAA selected Yordanopoulos and Bodzinski from among 159 submissions.
"Social emotional well-being of students has been a focus for us this year,” Schmidt said. “The work that Gianna and Kylie have done with Active Minds and the Kyle Cares Foundation has been instrumental in helping our coaches and student-athletes focus on this initiative beyond the school and inside the athletic arena."
This round of MIAA community service projects, from August-December 2022, included 7,819 student-athletes, who donated 34,013 hours of service and raised $210,097 for charitable causes.
“Congratulations to Kylie and Gianna for receiving this honor,” Superintendent Cohen said. “The District team works hard to ensure each student has the social and emotional support needed to be successful. Their efforts on the summit and throughout this school year have had a noticeable impact on the High School.”
Click here to review the full submission by Nipmuc Regional High School. To view all projects submitted, click here.