Teens earn top honors at Verizon program pitch contest
• The West Leyden High School team of Julian Balboa, Jeremy Bui, Kimberly Celis and Kiara Valenzuela won first place and were voted "Crowd Favorite" at the Verizon Innovative Learning and Design Thinking, Chicago Regional Pitch Competition.
The Verizon Innovative Learning Design Thinking Program supplies digital tools and hands-on learning opportunities to schools and communities across the country. Through the program, Arizona State University Entrepreneurship & Innovation and the Verizon Foundation train high school educators to teach design thinking, innovation, entrepreneurship and STEM skills by working with local businesses to solve real-world challenges through the use of emerging technologies.
Leyden high schools were among 30 high schools chosen to participate in the program. At the start of the second semester, 125 students from West Leyden and 50 students from the East campus used the design thinking process and promising technology to create a solution for their business partners G4G Fitness, Lake Book Manufacturing, Leyden Township Parks and Recreation and Stenograph, LLC.
• During the May 7 Des Plaines City Council meeting City Clerk Jennifer L. Tsalapatanis presented a Certificate of Recognition to Alderman Dick Sayad for his outreach efforts in welcoming new residents to the Fourth Ward.
The certificate was presented to publicly acknowledge Alderman Sayad's unique achievement of personally distributing over 4,000 welcome packets to new homeowners who relocated to the Fourth Ward during his tenure with the city.
The City Clerk's Office creates the packets to help provide new residents with important information about city services, resources and intergovernmental partners such is the library, park districts and schools.
• Payton Kaye of Schaumburg is among the recipients of a scholarship grant from the Dennis Taylor Scholarship Foundation for the Performing Arts. The scholarship benefits postsecondary students residing in the Western suburbs of Chicago, who have declared a major in the performing arts and demonstrated a passion for performance.
Kaye is a senior at Conant High School where he sings and plays trombone in various bands and ensembles. He also appeared in musical theater productions at school and with Schaumburg On Stage. Kaye plans to study sound recording technology and jazz trombone at DePaul University.
The Dennis Taylor Scholarship Foundation has been set up in memory of Dennis Taylor, who served as a dancer, choreographer, costumer and wig designer in the Western suburbs for more than five decades.
• Submit your 'Neighbors in the News' items to Norrine Twohey at ntwohey@dailyherald.com.