At the October 2023 ACTION Student Leadership Workshop held in Kearney, NJ, student attendees from ERCBNA schools were commissioned as this year’s Edmund Rice ACTION Ambassadors. In this role, these students spent the year serving as representatives for their schools, leading their peers on various human rights and social justice campaigns, and liaising with other ACTION Ambassadors from around the Global ER Network. Throughout the 2023-2024 academic year, the ACTION Ambassadors joined Zoom calls to share ideas, designed and implemented campaigns, and presented the efforts they undertook to promote projects in their school and local communities that were related to homelessness, children’s rights, and environmental justice.

The awards are named in honor of the late Tom Gambardella, who passed away in March of 2021. Tom served as the Associate Director for the Office of Educational Services, and taught at Bishop Hendricken High School for 18 years. He was a proud alumnus of Bishop Hendricken and Iona College, and served as Hendricken’s Director of Campus Ministry from 2008 to 2020. Tom was deeply passionate about Catholic education, and was an ardent supporter of the various ministries of the Christian Brothers, including mission trips to Peru, Texas, Florida, New Orleans, and Maine, ACTION workshops, and the Called and Gifted Retreat program. Tom’s welcoming personality, passion for serving the poor and marginalized, and commitment to building community have and continue to inspire members of the Edmund Rice Network around the world.

The ERCBNA Office of Educational Services and Advocacy Office would like to thank all of our ERCBNA ACTION Ambassadors and staff moderators for their outstanding efforts in advocating for the poor and marginalized in the spirit of Blessed Edmund Rice.

We are pleased to announce the 2023-2024 Tom Gambardella ACTION Advocacy Awards:

1st Place Award

• Iona Preparatory School, New Rochelle, New York.
• ACTION Ambassadors: Max Connolly, Mateo Del Rio Lanse, Nigel Presume.
• Mentor: Mrs. Christine Chana.

ACTION Ambassadors at Iona Prep demonstrated an unwavering commitment to advocacy during the 2023-2024 academic year. Across all three of their advocacy campaigns, ACTION Ambassadors from Iona Prep displayed tireless efforts to engage not only their peers, faculty, and staff from their school, but also members of their local community. The Ambassadors encouraged awareness of and advocacy for many topics including homelessness; food insecurity; educational access for children of recent immigrants; inclusion of and supporting the rights of children with developmental disabilities; and a variety of environmental and sustainability concerns, including community gardening and reducing the school’s carbon footprint.

Highlights from Iona Prep’s Campaigns included:

• ACTION Ambassadors at Iona Prep held a campaign centered on creating school-wide awareness of their school’s carbon footprint, and worked to identify solutions for taking action to reduce emissions. Ambassadors calculated the school’s carbon footprint, and created the Carbon Emissions Reduction Pathway to push the school community towards net-zero emissions. Ambassadors encouraged their peers to become more aware of carbon capture through the screening of a documentary and a campaign through their schools TV station that shared the all too rare good news surrounding progress on climate action. Ambassadors then researched carbon offset credits, and held school wide fundraisers to raise money to purchase credits through the United Nations Carbon Offset Platform. The Ambassadors also joined the board of a local nonprofit, Westchester Green County, USA, through which they met with other high school students and shared their effort surrounding climate action and sustainability.
• Iona Prep’s Children’s Rights campaign included interviewing leaders of local nonprofits that serve children with disabilities and recent immigrants to the United States. Through this campaign, Iona’s ACTION Ambassadors learned more about the legislative shortcomings that often leave these groups underserved. Their campaign encouraged Iona peers to become more involved in serving with these groups, and inspired others to further research concerns surrounding children’s rights. The campaign culminated with students authoring and submitting a statement to the U.N.’s Human Rights Council which encouraged the United States to ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

In recognition of the 1st Place Award, Iona Prep will receive a $2,000 prize, individual trophies for Ambassadors, and the Tom Gambardella Advocacy ACTION Award 1st Place Plaque to be displayed at their school.

2nd Place Award

• St. Thomas More Collegiate, Burnaby, British Columbia.
• ACTION Ambassadors: Gaby Grecia Lyons, Vilson Lai, Meara McCormick, Stefan Pavel.
• Mentor: Mr. Darren McCormick.

During the 2023-2024 year, ACTION Ambassadors from St. Thomas More Collegiate showed great creativity and a strong commitment to making an impact in their local community through their advocacy efforts. STMC’s ACTION Ambassadors created campaigns that created a deeper awareness for concerns such as homelessness, child exploitation, and environmental concerns within their school community.

Highlights from St. Thomas More’s Campaigns included:

• During their campaign on homelessness, ACTION Ambassadors from STMC spent time learning about the realities of homelessness in their local community of Burnaby by connecting with local non-profits. After partnering and serving with these groups, the ACTION Ambassadors researched specific causes of homelessness and used this research to write a letter to government leaders advocating for those experiencing homelessness in the city of Burnaby. ACTION Ambassadors also raised awareness of these concerns by presenting to their peers in classes, and speaking to potential students and families at open houses about their advocacy campaign.
• In conjunction with their campaign on Children’s Rights, STMC ACTION Ambassadors implemented a child labor simulation activity that fellow students participated in to learn more about the exploitation of child workers in the clothing industry. Through this activity, Ambassadors were able to invite more than 100 fellow students to participate in the activity, which created a deeper understanding of child labor concerns, and encouraged students to be more aware of the practices of the companies from which they purchase and wear clothing.

In recognition of the 2nd Place Award, St. Thomas More will receive a $1,000 prize, and a 2nd Place plaque to be displayed at their school.

Honorable Mention Award

• Brother Rice High School, Chicago, Illinois.
• ACTION Ambassadors: Jay Jilek, Diego Padron, Matthew Phelan.
• Mentor: Mr. Mike Dolan.

During the 2023-2024 year, ACTION Ambassadors from Brother Rice Chicago helped to build awareness of a variety of human rights concerns and justice issues through their advocacy campaigns. From raising awareness of the causes and realities of homelessness, to supporting and funding education programs for underserved children, ACTION Ambassadors at Brother Rice have encouraged their school community to be more aware of needs in their local community and beyond.

Highlights from Brother Rice’s Campaigns included:

• Inspired by a fall service project at the Wolfe Wildlife Refuge, which was littered with plastic waste, ACTION Ambassadors from Br. Rice organized an environmental awareness campaign at their school in conjunction with Earth Day 2024. Through this campaign, ACTION Ambassadors promoted a reduction in plastic consumption, and shared information and resources to reduce plastic waste within their school community. ACTION Ambassadors also organized a return trip to the wildlife refuge, and recruited fellow students to return to remove all plastic waste.
• In December, Brother Rice’s ACTION Ambassadors held a homelessness Awareness campaign to encourage their peers to be more knowledgeable about the realities of homelessness in their city. Brother Rice’s Advocacy Club has also continued their work of organizing and holding burial and funeral services for indigent persons.

In recognition of their Honorable Mention Award, ACTION Ambassadors from Brother Rice will receive Honorable Mention Certificates.