Local High School Student Spearheads Initiatve On Inclusion

LAKE COUNTY, IL — A local middle school student is the winner of an art contest put on by the local youth-led non-profit, Amethyst Changemakers.

Amritha Praveen, a junior at Stevenson High School, is the founder of Amethyst Changemakers.

Amethyst Changemaker's mission is to empower all students to thrive in STEM by championing inclusion and advocating for diverse, accessible education for everyone regardless of their abilities, identities, and background.

Earlier in the year, Amethyst Changemakers ran an art contest as part of National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month, which was in March. The Vernon Township Mental Health Board judged the contest, picking Advika Menon, a 7th grade student at Fremont Middle School in Mundelein, as the first-place winner.

“This artwork shows how much including people with disabilities can impact the world," Menon said. "The Earth stands on the side, watching everyone, telling them to keep making people belong, and to keep making the world a better place for everyone.”

Praveen said her organization had 10 submission from middle school students across Lake and Cook counties.

"Since we're a small nonprofit that is just getting started, we were really impressed by the creativity and depth of the artwork we received," Parveen said. "Each piece showed such genuine understanding of what inclusion means."

Advika won a $75 gift card and will have her artwork featured in Amethyst Changemakers' upcoming kit, which will be donated to local schools this coming fall.

"We're creating inclusion puzzle pieces and her artwork will be displayed on the puzzle that will be donated to elementary and middle schools to help younger students learn about disability awareness and acceptance," Parveen said.

"I started this contest because March is National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month, and I wanted to give young people a platform to express their thoughts about inclusion," she said. "As a high school student, I've seen how important it is to start these conversations early. Art is such a powerful way for kids to process and creatively share their understanding of complex topics like disability and belonging."