NOLA-PS Superintendent Congratulates the District’s 2022 State Students of the Year Winner

(New Orleans – April 14, 2022) — NOLA Public Schools (NOLA-PS) Superintendent Dr. Henderson Lewis extended a congratulatory message to Benjamin Franklin High School 12th grader Anita Zahiri for being named as a winner in this year's Louisiana Department of Education's (LDOE) annual Students of the Year competition. Zahiri, along with Lusher 5th grader Jayden Gardere and Lusher 8th grader Richard "Ben" Blevins were named as finalists in the competition.

"Congratulations to Anita! This is a well-deserved honor, and we hope you enjoy this award with your school, family, and friends," said NOLA-PS Superintendent Dr. Henderson Lewis, Jr. "We are so proud of Anita, as well as Jayden and Richard. They're all well-rounded students who have achieved academic excellence and demonstrated good citizenship and leadership skills. It was great honor to have them represent our District

Anita Zahiri is a senior at Benjamin Franklin High School. A member of Key Club, Mu Alpha Theta, HOSA - Future Health Professionals, From Student to Scientist, Science Olympiad, and the swim team, Anita is also a Coca-Cola Scholar finalist, National Merit finalist, and Jack Kent Cooke Scholar semifinalist.

Although she is still weighing her choices for college, her ultimate goal is to attend medical school and pursue a career in surgery. Zahiri also hopes to learn new languages and travel more to expand her worldview through meeting new people from diverse backgrounds.

Prior to being chosen as a state winner, the state selection committee conducted an interview and reviewed a writing sample from Zahiri. NOLA-PS is proud of her accomplishment and wishes her much success! 

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About NOLA Public Schools: NOLA Public Schools is the public school district for Orleans Parish. It includes the district's administration and elected school board, known as the Orleans Parish School Board. NOLA Public Schools currently oversees 76 public schools and is led by Superintendent Dr. Henderson Lewis, Jr.

For more information, visit www.nolapublicschools.com. For updates, follow NOLA Public Schools on Facebook @NOLAPublicSchools, Instagram @nolaps and Twitter @NOLAPSchools.