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The Congressional Award Podcast: Elevating DC Youth

The Congressional Award Podcast: Elevating DC Youth

by The Congressional Award

Non-Profit Stories for Kids

Season 1

Pilot | Paxton Baker: Introduction to The Congressional Award

Season 1 of this podcast was launched in partnership with DC Radio, Eliot-Hine Middle School, and The Congressional Award Foundation. The series is produced by The DC Office of Cable Television, Film, Music, and Entertainment (OCTFME) in collaboration with Eliot-Hine Middle School students. The Congressional Award Board of Director's Chairman Paxton Baker provides an introduction to The Congressional Award program.

Episode 1 | Joshua Nelson: Communications and Storytelling

Fox News Reporter and 2015 Bronze Medalist Joshua Q. Nelson speaks on the communications industry and using storytelling as an effective communications tool.

Episode 2 | Fernando Miranda-Fred: Leadership

Accounting firm KPMG intern, student-athlete, and 2019 Gold Medalist Fernando Miranda-Fred reflects on his experience with leadership and how to become a strong leader no matter what stage of life you're in.

Episode 3 | Swati Bhageria: STEM Pathway to Career

Facebook intern, full-time college student, and 2018 Gold Medalist Swati Bhageria speaks on her journey to a career in tech and discusses how she's navigated the challenges of breaking into the STEM field.

Episode 4 | Victoria Willingham: Technology and Culture

Government at LYFT and 2008 Gold Medalist Victoria Willingham speaks on her career in law and the tech industry.

Episode 5 | Nicole Brown: Overcoming Challenges

Senior Manager at The Recording Academy and 2009 Bronze Medalist Nicole Brown speaks on overcoming challenges and her career in the entertainment industry.

Episode 6 | Zenani Johnson: Advocacy and Community Service

Florida Gubernatorial Fellow, Congressional Award Communications Intern, and 2015 Silver Medalist Zenani Johnson speaks on her career in advocacy and lifelong dedication to community service.

Season 2

Episode 1 | Bonnie Lei: Career Growth & Sustainability Practices

Originally for Los Angeles, Bonnie now lives in Seattle where she has held multiple positions within Microsoft. In her current role she works on the environmental sustainability team where she focuses on corporate environmental strategy. This career path stems from her love for biology and her want to make an impact through conservation. Before Microsoft, she trained as a conservation biologist, in which she was recognized as a National Geographic Explorer for her work in environmental education. Previously, she helped initiate the marine program for the Wildlife Conservation Society in Myanmar, discovered a new sea slug species in the Caribbean, and researched climate adaptation of endangered penguins in South Africa. Bonnie received her B.A. in organismic and evolutionary biology at Harvard University and was an inaugural Schwarzman Scholar at Tsinghua University.

Episode 2 | Bailey Ayers: Music Interests to Music Licensing

During her time as a participant of the Award, Bailey lived in Kansas City before completing her BFA in Recorded Music at NYU. The Award motivated her to continue into adulthood her work on Award program pillars such as physical fitness through tennis, personal development through music, and volunteerism through her local junior league. Her love for music has led her to become the Music Licensing Specialist for The Tonight Show where she oversees all the music licensing for the show. Without the Award giving her the motivation to continue her love for music, she may not have decided to go into the music industry.

Episode 3 | Christopher Merken: Continuing Service Beyond the Award

Before obtaining his LLM in Trial Advocacy, Christopher attended the University of Delaware for political science and Villanova for law school. His past experiences include interning for Vice President Joe Biden, working as a judicial clerk, and being an adjunct professor of law at the Delaware Law School. His award journey began in the eighth grade when he took on the self-motivated initiative to find a program that would highlight all the activities he was already doing. His award experience was key to helping him in his future career and he has discussed the experience before in interviews and on resumes. He hopes to either become a lawyer in Philadelphia or work on the White House Counsel in the Fall.

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