Bank of America’s annual Student Leaders program has selected four of Orange County’s brightest high school students who have shown unparalleled dedication to their communities for an opportunity to gain workplace experience.
The program selects around 300 community-oriented high school students from across the nation to connect them with local nonprofits in an eight-week summer internship. This year, rising seniors Leila Armand of Placentia, David (Shijoon) Bae of Irvine, Tristan Lee of Fullerton and Anusha Misra of Rancho Santa Margarita were selected to work with CEO Leadership Alliance of Orange County and Second Harvest Food Bank Orange County.
Working with these two nonprofits will help educate the students on community needs, while developing their workplace skills and existing leadership skills that have proven beyond their years. Like completing a puzzle, these students already have all of the necessary traits to become successful community leaders. The Bank of America Student Leaders program is simply providing the last piece: experience.
“By providing career and leadership development opportunities for teens, we can help develop the next generation of skilled workforce that is essential to Orange County’s long-term economic growth,” said Allen Staff, president of Bank of America Orange County. “These students are truly exceptional, and the opportunity for them to work with a highly impactful local nonprofits like CEO Leadership Alliance of Orange County and Second Harvest Food Bank Orange County along with financial education can collectively prepare them for future success.”
With the Student Leaders Program, Bank of America hopes to close the gap between job postings and jobs filled, which has increased in recent years. They believe providing teens and young adults with invaluable work experience is the key.
Here’s a closer look at the four OC student leaders and some of their inspiring community work.
Leila Armand, Placentia
Leila attends Valencia High School in the Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District, where she serves as the president of her school’s Black Student Union and plays on the varsity basketball team. In her spare time, Leila volunteers with Black Girls Code and Girl Up STEM, two organizations dedicated to promoting diversity in STEM fields. She aims to pursue a degree in computer science in order to help unpack new technology such as AI.
David (Shijoon) Bae, Irvine
David attends the Orange County School of the Arts, a public charter in Santa Ana, where he studies in the creative writing conservatory. As a first-generation immigrant, David advocates for the rights of English language learners and low-income students in his role as state president of the California Association of Student Councils, or CASC. He has also co-founded FilmEnvisioned — this organization hosts K-12 writing and film camps — initiated the WOW-Korea! Club at his school, and has been spotlighted in a Tedx Talk on the male relationship with vulnerability.
Tristan Lee, Fullerton
Tristan attends Fairmont Preparatory Academy in Anaheim. The majority of his community work is centered on individuals with disabilities, inspired by a friend who struggled with scoliosis. Tristan regularly volunteers at Friends for Special Needs, where he initiated a basketball program to encourage exercise and build confidence in people with disabilities, especially those of color. He also established a social enterprise project that helps individuals who are disabled secure meaningful employment. Tristan is equally as passionate about sustainability, motivating him to help work on an initiative to create shoes that store energy with the end goal of providing renewable energy and electricity to disadvantaged communities.
Anusha Misra, Rancho Santa Margarita
Anusha attends Dana Hills High School in the Capistrano Unified School District. She serves as president of her school’s Inter-Club Council, which helps guide and assist the over 70 clubs on campus. She is also president of the school’s California Scholarship Federation and plays on the varsity tennis team. Additionally, Anusha’s passion for volunteer work and her community inspired her to co-found ENGAGE, an organization that connects students with local volunteer opportunities, and to found Senior TechConnect, which provides tech support to local seniors. She also sits on the teen advisory board for Mission Viejo Library and coaches tennis camps in the summer.
In July, these students connected with the roughly 300 other Bank of America Student Leaders from around the country in Washington, D.C. for a national leadership summit. Dedicated to promoting collaboration and community advocacy, the summit will also allow student leaders to meet with members of Congress.
Applications for the 2025 program will open this fall.