Jamie Theye, Peru State College

Jamie Theye is an exemplary student whose volunteer efforts with the Children’s Health, Activity, and Nutrition Community Engagement (CHANCE) Initiative go beyond what “typical” students do. Last year Jamie was a student leader assisting with the implementation of the CHANCE Initiative, which originally began as a partnership with the local elementary school. Since its inception, Jamie has assisted with the expansion of the program to include middle school students. Through her involvement with CHANCE Jamie has instructed weekly classroom activities, participated in community kick-off events, helped lead a culminating event for the first year, and presented locally, regionally, and nationally on multiple occasions about CHANCE. Jamie demonstrates her motivation for long-term civic engagement through her desire to be an educator. She has a passion for education and wants to continue leading students not only in traditional classroom instruction, but also by serving as a high school sponsor for clubs/organizations that carry out community service, service-learning, and/or community engagement work. Jamie truly exhibits exceptional integrity in all she does both inside and outside of the classroom. Her outstanding character is sure to garner additional support as she leads/guides others in long-term civic engagement.