2016-2017: Vanessa Mae Avendano, Senior

As the Vice President of her school’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender (LGBT) Club, Vanessa has led training sessions for faculty to better learn how to approach LGBT students and the issues facing them.

In an effort to fight hate, Vanessa also created Falls Church High School United, a coalition of clubs at her school which share similar missions of spreading peace and acceptance. She created a script and collaborated with these clubs to produce a series of videos concerning anti-bullying and respect.

Part of a large, extended Filipino-American family, Vanessa describes herself as a person of color, an immigrant, and a member of both an ethnic and a sexual minority group. While Vanessa acknowledges the political necessity of speaking out for tolerance and acceptance, she feels that building personal relationships between people is central to her work. She says, “I think it’s incredibly important that people understand how they affect others by the way they interact, and how they make others feel as individuals in this society. Spreading tolerance is a constant work in progress. It has to do with every word you speak and every action you take. We have to always be conscious of the effect we have when we use our voices, and make an effort to do things that benefit and bring others up rather than tear them down.”

Emily Lewis, Latin Teacher and Co-Sponsor of the LGBT Club, summarizes, “Vanessa’s ambition to spread awareness about social issues that relate to acceptance of gender, religion, and race is contagious and empowering for everyone around her.”

Vanessa hopes to pursue a degree in psychology and to have a career in social work with an emphasis in housing and assisting LGBT youth.