Roslindale 8th-grader receives award from Harvard Medical School

Shantia Antunes of Roslindale, an 8th-grader at the John D. O’Bryant School of Math and Science, receives the 2011 Reflection in Action Youth Leadership Award from Joan Y. Reede, dean for Diversity and Community Partnership at Harvard Medical School.

By Kim Foley MacKinnon, Town Correspondent

Shantia Antunes, a resident of Roslindale and an 8th-grader at the John D. O’Bryant School of Math and Science, is one of two Boston Public School students who recently received a 2011 Youth Leadership Award from the “Reflection in Action: Building Healthy Communities” program from Harvard Medical School.

The Harvard Medical School Office for Diversity and Community Partnership aims to help address and eliminate health care disparities through creative expression. The annual award is given to students who reflect the vision and purpose of the program.

Boston and Cambridge 6th-, 7th- and 8th-graders can participate in the forum, which links improvement in individual and community health to engagement in civic action.

Students learn that their good health, and the health of their families and communities, is important and realizable. In addition, they are shown that their voice, creative expression and activism can have a positive impact on the community’s health.

The award is given to outstanding youth who serve as role models for civic engagement, exhibit leadership qualities, advocate for health and educational opportunities and participate in or support the arts. Antunes was recognized as “a warm-hearted young woman with a positive attitude as evidenced on the basketball court and as a musician.”

Fabiola Moquete, a Mattapan resident and a graduating senior at the Boston Arts Academy, also received an award for her academic achievements and service as a member of Artists for Humanity.