The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards is the biggest youth recognition program in the U.S., and it focuses solely on volunteer work and community service.
Launched in 1995 by Prudential and the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), this program celebrates middle and high school students who make a difference through exceptional community service at the local, state, and national levels.
In this blog, we examine the prestigious award and its evolution over the past years. If you are interested in participating, we also include a list of past winners and their initiatives to give you an idea of what the award-giving body is looking for.
- What Is the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards?
- Prudential Emerging Visionaries
- Who Can Join the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards?
- What Do Awardees Get?
- Program Timeline and Important Dates
- What Do the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards Look For?
- How to Win the Award
- Is the Prudential Spirit Of Community Awards Good for College Application?
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Takeaways
What Is the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards?
The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards recognizes middle and high school students who have gone above and beyond with self-driven community service. The award is sponsored by The Prudential Insurance Company of America and managed by the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP).
For over 20 years, Prudential has honored more than 150,000 young volunteers across the U.S. through the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards. The innovative ideas of these young leaders led to the creation of Prudential Emerging Visionaries in 2021. This program now recognizes young changemakers who bring fresh solutions to financial and societal challenges in their communities.
Prudential Emerging Visionaries
Prudential Emerging Visionaries is the evolution of the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards. Young changemakers aged 14 to 18 who participate in the program are called The Prudential Emerging Visionaries. They are students committed to creating positive change, offering the chance to earn up to $15,000 in awards.
Winners also get an all-expenses-paid trip to Prudential’s headquarters in Newark, New Jersey, with a parent or guardian, plus access to coaching and skills development to grow their initiatives even further. This program is sponsored by Prudential in partnership with Ashoka, a global leader in social impact.
Each fall, applications open to more than 35,000 public and private middle and high schools across the U.S. Schools select local honorees in November, and from these, two top students are chosen from each state, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Finally, a panel of judges selects 10 National Honorees, who are recognized in May at a special ceremony in Washington, D.C.
The selection committee is looking for changemakers who can clearly explain their initiative, how it operates, and the personal story behind it. Additionally, diversity in gender, accessibility, ethnicity, and geography is highly considered in the selection process.
Who Can Join the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards?
To apply, make sure you meet the following requirements:
- You must be between 14 and 18 years old by November 2, 2023.
- Only individuals can apply (no groups or partners).
- You must be a legal resident of the U.S. or Puerto Rico.
- Your project must have started by June 1, 2023.
- Winners must attend the in-person event in April 2024 with a chaperone.
- Only one application per person is submitted in English.
- Previous honorees and employees (and their family members) of Prudential and its partners are not eligible.
What Do Awardees Get?
As an eligible participant, you’ll receive:
- Peer feedback on your submission through the online platform, with opportunities to connect with other applicants.
- Access to on-demand training to support your journey as a changemaker.
- A digital certificate of participation.
- A chance to win one of two Early Entry Awards ($1,000 each) if you submit your application by September 28, 2023.
If you’re selected as a winner, you’ll receive:
- Up to $15,000 in cash awards, with 25 winners receiving $5,000 each (20 from the Societal Solutions category and 5 from Financial Solutions).
- The five Financial Solutions winners will participate in a pitch-off at the Prudential Emerging Visionaries Awards Summit. The Grand Prize Winner will earn an additional $10,000, totaling $15,000.
- One winner will receive the Prudential Employees’ Choice Award, with an additional $5,000 prize. (The Financial Solutions Grand Prize Winner is not eligible for this award.)
- All 25 winners will enjoy an all-expenses-paid trip to Newark, New Jersey, from April 20-23, 2024, for the Prudential Emerging Visionaries Awards Summit. This event includes coaching, skill development, and the opportunity to connect with Prudential’s senior leaders to help grow their initiatives.
Program Timeline and Important Dates
Here’s a detailed breakdown of the important dates for the 2024 Prudential Emerging Visionaries program:
| Timeline | Activities |
| September 7, 2023 | Program launch. You can submit, edit, and resubmit your application until the final deadline. |
| September 28, 2023 | Early entry deadline. Submit by this date to be considered for two $1,000 Early Entry Awards. Early entrants will receive feedback from Ashoka staff to improve their applications before the final deadline. |
| November 2, 2023 | Final entry deadline. All applications must be submitted by this time. |
| November 7-24, 2023 | Application screening and peer review by program partners and fellow applicants. |
| December 2023 – February 2024 | Community engagement activities such as skill-building sessions for eligible applicants. More details will be shared after the final deadline. |
| February 13, 2024 | Winners announced. |
| April 20-23, 2024 | Award Summit at Prudential’s headquarters in Newark, NJ. Winners will receive coaching and development sessions. The Prudential Employees’ Choice Award Winner and Financial Solutions Grand Prize Winner will also be announced. |
| April-June 2024 | Winners will receive one-on-one coaching with Prudential staff to further develop their initiatives. |
Note: The 2025 program timeline has not been released yet. However, the program follows almost the same timeline each year. Check the official website regularly for the up-to-date timeline.
What Do the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards Look For?
The program’s goals align with Prudential’s mission to improve lives by tackling today’s financial challenges. Five winners focus on breaking down barriers to financial inclusion, while 20 work on societal issues like AI ethics, promoting STEM careers for students with learning disabilities, and improving access to mental health care.
Winners are selected based on their innovation, impact potential, understanding of the issue, and passion for change. Each receives $5,000 and an all-expenses-paid trip to a three-day summit at Prudential’s headquarters for coaching and networking with other changemakers.
The award-giving body already has hundreds of awardees at this point, each year different from the last. However, they look for the same qualities in their finalists. They evaluate the entries based on the following:
- Innovation. Are you using creative solutions to improve financial health or address social issues?
- Scalability. Does your idea have potential to grow and make a wider impact?
- Connection. Do you deeply understand the issue and community you’re serving?
- Changemaker qualities. Are you passionate, showing leadership, and inspiring others to act?
To provide you with exact examples of what they look for in their awardees, here’s a list of the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards 2024 winners and their community service projects:
Here is a complete list of 2024 winners under the Financial Solutions category:
| Awardees | Financial Solutions for a Changing World Award Project |
| Michael Brode, 17
Winterville, North Carolina |
Created “Crypto Debunked,” an engaging learning platform designed to teach young people about financial topics like cryptocurrency and blockchain. His mission is to close the financial education gap for underserved communities. |
| Jonathan De Caro, 16
Moodus, Connecticut, |
Founded “One Loan Fund,” a financial service that offers micro-loans to unbanked women in rural Latin America. His goal is to promote economic mobility, inclusion, and long-term financial health for these women. |
| Caden Harris, 14
Stonecrest, Georgia |
Launched “Financial Literacy for All,” a mobile program that strives to integrate financial literacy into every school’s curriculum, ensuring that financial knowledge is accessible to all students. |
| Sebastian Tan, 16
Sewickley, Pennsylvania |
Started “OutsideConnection,” an online job platform focused on helping formerly incarcerated individuals find employment opportunities, empowering them to contribute to their communities. |
| Remy Tsukahira, 16
Los Angeles, California |
Founded “Artemis Girls Business Academy,” a network that connects teen girls with professional women mentors, providing the resources, skills, and connections needed to pursue careers in business and entrepreneurship. |
Here are 10 of the 2024 awardees under the Societal Solutions category:
| Awardees | Societal Solutions for a Changing World Award Project |
| Sunya Afrasiabi, 17
Buffalo, New York |
Launched the “#MyStory Program,” a storytelling project that highlights the experiences of immigrants and refugees through oral history, narrative therapy, and photography. |
| Sreenidi Bala, 16
Farmington, Connecticut |
Created “Code for All Minds,” a computer science program specifically designed for neurodivergent students. The program equips educators and families with a curriculum that makes STEM careers accessible to young people with learning disabilities. |
| William Charouhis, 18
Miami, Florida |
Founded “A Million Mangroves,” a youth-led network in Miami dedicated to planting 1 million mangroves by 2030. This initiative tackles climate change by capturing atmospheric carbon and protecting coastlines. |
| Yaduraj Choudhary, 17
Downingtown, Pennsylvania |
Founded “3 Tiny Bones,” an initiative that partners with policymakers to advance hearing health legislation and create safe spaces in schools to destigmatize hearing loss. |
| Marie Dillard, 18
Englewood, New Jersey |
Founded “The Crescendo Lab,” a classical music mentorship program that supports youth of color, providing greater access to music education and paving the way for an inclusive future in American orchestras. |
| Angelina DiPaola, 18
Cincinnati, Ohio |
Co-founded “Compai,” a smart home composting system that uses digital sensors and a mobile app to make composting easier. The system connects users with composting experts and fosters community among local composters. |
| Anika Dugal, 17
Matawan, New Jersey, |
Started “Girls for Algorithmic Justice,” a global grassroots coalition of young women advocating for political action to address gender and racial disparities in artificial intelligence technologies. |
| Saawan Duvvuri, 16
Nashville, Tennessee |
Founded “LiteratureDiversified,” a youth-led nonprofit that works to diversify educational curriculums and address racial disparities in American education. |
| Mackenzie Goldsteen, 16
Bethesda, Maryland |
Created “Buildgirls,” a nonprofit focused on empowering high school girls to pursue careers in architecture, construction, and engineering—fields that have significant gender gaps. |
| Donte Jennings, 17
Nolanville, Texas |
Founded “EmpowerME,” a literacy project for Black boys facing mental health challenges. The project encourages a love of reading, self-expression, and shared storytelling while also advocating for mental health awareness. |
How to Win the Award
To stand out and win an award, you need to go beyond meeting the basic requirements. You must show your accomplishments, unique qualities, and potential for future success. Demonstrating leadership, creativity, perseverance, and an understanding of the award’s values will help set you apart.
Align your goals with the award’s mission.
Make sure your achievements reflect the core values of the award. Research past winners to see what the selection committee values. For example, if the award focuses on environmental impact, highlight your commitment to sustainability and provide specific examples, like starting a recycling program that reduced waste by 40%.
Show impact with clear metrics.
Use measurable outcomes to prove the effectiveness of your work. Instead of saying you helped a community, share specific results, like how many students your literacy program assisted and how their reading levels improved.
Highlight leadership and innovation.
Awards often go to people who show leadership and take initiative. Emphasize times when you led a project or came up with creative solutions. For example, if you led a mental health awareness campaign, explain how it reached 10,000 people and led to partnerships for free counseling services.
Share personal growth and challenges.
Discuss obstacles you’ve overcome and how they contributed to your personal growth. This makes your story more relatable. For instance, talk about balancing school and work while leading volunteer projects or overcoming setbacks to launch a successful initiative.
Tell a compelling personal story.
Frame your experiences into a cohesive story that highlights your passion and vision for the future. Instead of listing achievements, connect them to your personal journey. For example, explain how a personal experience inspired you to start educational workshops that now serve over 200 people in underserved areas.
Is the Prudential Spirit Of Community Awards Good for College Application?
Yes, The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards greatly benefits a college application. It is one of the largest youth recognition programs in the U.S. focused on volunteerism and community service, traits that many colleges highly value. Earning this award demonstrates your leadership, initiative, and commitment to making a positive impact in your community. Colleges often seek students who not only excel academically but also show a genuine interest in civic engagement, and this award serves as strong evidence of those qualities.
Moreover, the award’s national recognition adds significant weight to your application. Past honorees have gone on to attend prestigious universities, and being a state or national honoree can distinguish you in a competitive applicant pool.
For example, top honorees receive a $5,000 Prudential Spirit of Community scholarship, which not only contributes to your financial aid but also signals to colleges that you are capable of achieving at a high level in both academic and extracurricular areas. It’s a meaningful, prestigious award that reinforces your strengths and dedication to service.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. I applied this year but was not chosen. Can I still apply in the future?
Yes! If you applied but were not selected as a Prudential Emerging Visionaries winner, you are encouraged to apply again this year. If you’ve previously applied to the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards but didn’t receive National or State Honoree recognition, you’re also welcome to reapply. Distinguished finalists are encouraged to apply as well!
2. Do I need to be a Prudential customer to apply for this challenge?
No, being a Prudential customer is not required to apply.
3. I am a part of a team. Can multiple team members submit an application for our project?
Yes, multiple team members can apply. A team can either select one representative to submit an individual application, or each leadership member can submit their own. Each application will be reviewed individually without affecting other team members’ chances. However, any submissions that appear plagiarized, including using parts of another team member’s application, will be disqualified.
4. Is the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards prestigious?
Yes, the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards is prestigious. It is one of the largest and most respected youth recognition programs for community service in the U.S., highlighting significant leadership and volunteer contributions. Being honored by this program can enhance college applications and resumes, as it reflects dedication to making a positive impact.
Takeaways
The prestigious Prudential Spirit of Community Awards is the nation’s biggest youth recognition program in the U.S and has awarded hundreds of students who have passion for community service and innovation.
- The awards are broken down into two categories: Financial Solutions for a Changing World Award Project and Societal Solutions for a Changing World Award.
- Each cycle, 25 winners are identified. 5 winners are awarded the Financial Solutions award and 20 winners are picked for Societal Solutions. Each winner gets $5000.
- Every year, the award-giving body receives hundreds of applications and filters through each of them. Ultimately, they are looking for projects using the following criteria: innovation, scalability, connection, and changemaker qualities.
- If you want to participate in this program to boost your college application, we recommend consulting a college admission expert to help you prepare and strengthen your program application.
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