In honor of their tireless efforts toward a more inclusive and just society, the National Education Association recognized nine individuals and organizations, including a Connecticut high school student, with NEA Human and Civil Rights Awards Wednesday night at the Philadelphia Convention Center.
Farmington High School junior Sreenidi (Sree) Bala was recognized with the SuAnne Big Crow Memorial Award for her work to advocate for racial equity and passion for inclusivity for neurodivergent students. The only student among the awardees, Bala thanked her fellow honorees for their inspiring work saying, “You make students across the country, like myself, shine with promise.”
Pictured above, second from right, Bala was congratulated at the awards banquet by NEA Director Tanya Kores, CEA Vice President Joslyn DeLancey, and President Kate Dias.
Bala has already shown much promise during her years at Farmington High School. She is the president of her high school’s Multicultural Student Union and was pivotal in planning an impactful Social Justice Week at the high school that prioritized discussions on racial and social justice and gave students a platform to share presentations on various pressing topics that affect them. Bala is passionate about uplifting marginalized voices and acknowledging the important contributions of the Indigenous people that lived in Farmington for many generations and organized students to speak at Board of Education meetings to advocate for implementing land acknowledgements across the Farmington school district.
Beyond empowering students and student voice at her school, Bala is also committed to the success of students with autism and worked with Farmington High special education faculty to design free curriculum for educators and accompanying video lessons specifically tailored for neurodivergent students. Known as “Code for All Minds,” the curriculum, which allows students to gain valuable skills, build confidence, and acquire tools for future success, is being implemented at Farmington High School.
Beyond her school’s walls, Bala is an intern and ongoing advocate with the State of Connecticut Commission on Human Rights & Opportunities and created a teen blog that allows middle and high school students to submit articles about civil and human rights law and enforcement and have those articles reviewed and published for consumption by the general public. She also participates in the Connecticut Kids Court Academy, a social justice and attorney pipeline program for middle and high school students.
“I want to extend my heartfelt gratitude to my Farmington Community for their unwavering support,” Bala told attendees at the awards banquet. “Special thanks to my principal Mr. Crist and my student activities director Mr. Loomis who have been guiding lights throughout my high school journey. Their mentorship has empowered me to seize every opportunity and strive for excellence. Every teacher and paraprofessional I’ve worked with and every student I’ve listened to has extended my perspective every day and made me a better human being, and I’m grateful for all of their support.”
“Whether it is an activity like Homecoming or a community service event, Sree is all in,” says Farmington High School counselor Chris Loomis. “She will be the one doing the behind the scenes work that no one will ever know about, and without her, many school functions wouldn’t happen. Sree also has the ability to step up and be in the spotlight for our events, making sure everything runs smoothly for everyone involved. Sree’s peers love her and always want to work with her. Everything she touches turns to gold.”
”I’ve learned that the power of the individual doesn’t lie in being able to change the entire world but in changing one person’s world, and I will continue to work towards that,” says Bala.
