Kianna Hawkins

A project taken on as one Girl Scout’s quest for the Gold Award has earned her additional recognition at the state and national levels.

Last year, 17-year-old Kianna Hawkins led an initiative called “EyeCare4TeenVision” to provide basic eye-care services and corrective lenses to needy young people. As a part of her project, she joined forces with various local organizations to coordinate a vision screening event for teens and collected more than 300 pairs of gently used eyeglasses. Those efforts led to Kianna earning the Gold Award, which is the highest honor a Girl Scout can receive (see related local newspaper story here).

Now a senior at HISD’s Lamar High School, Kianna was recently named a state finalist for the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards, as well as a “bronze” recipient of the President’s Service Award, with more than 120 hours spent volunteering.

“Kianna is a lovely young lady,” said Lamar Dean of Instruction Kelli McDonald Sydow. “She is accomplished, poised, and dedicated to service.”

Kianna has already been accepted to Howard University, the alma mater of both of her parents, where she plans to study corporate finance.

“I was honored to be nominated and honored to be a finalist, but I am mostly excited about receiving the President’s Volunteer Service Award, which was accompanied by a letter and certificate from President Barack Obama,” said Kianna. “The project was so successful, they are implementing it every year at the Nehemiah Center.”