Alexandra Fitzgerald and Ayden Simpson, two Horace Greeley seniors, have won the inaugural  Linda J. Zhang Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability Award. The scholarship award recognizes their leadership and advocacy for environmental issues and sustainability. The awards were presented to Alexandra and Ayden at the annual senior award ceremony at Horace Greeley High School on June 10, 2021. 

Alexandra is a co-president of the Sustainability club, a founding member of the Student Climate Coalition and a volunteer with RiverKeeper. She completed multiple science research projects focused on addressing environmental issues. She will be attending Tufts University in the fall and will be majoring in environmental engineering with a minor in philosophy.  The combination of studies will allow her to make a difference in both science and societal avenues. 

Ayden is very interested in sustainability issues and has been actively involved with the Sustainability club at Horace Greeley high school. He is highly intelligent and motivated to create a better world that addresses the environmental challenges that face all of us. In his article titled “Electric School Bus Campaign” published at Sustainable Putman’s newsletter, he advocates changes in the local community to replace diesel school buses with electric ones.

The Linda J. Zhang Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability Scholarship Award, given annually to two Horace Greeley High School seniors, is sponsored by Linda J. Zhang Memorial Foundation to honor the life and passion of Linda J. Zhang. We hope the scholarship will encourage more students to use their energy, talents and creativity to help solve climate change, plastic pollution and other pressing environmental challenges.