Kingswood Oxford junior Ananya Alleyne was honored recently at Hartford Girls Rock! for her work with the organization Jack and Jill.

Submitted by Jackie Pisani, Kingswood Oxford School

Hartford Girls Rock!, a program developed by the Epsilon Omicron Omega Chapter (Hartford Alumnae) of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, honored Kingswood Oxford’s Ananya Alleyne ’19 of West Hartford on Sunday, Sept. 24 at the Hartford Marriott.

The event celebrates the leadership, innovation, and empowerment of young women from community-based organizations in the Greater Hartford area.

Alleyne is the vice president of the executive board of Jack and Jill, the oldest and largest African-American family organization in the United States. Jack and Jill is committed to ensuring that all children have the same opportunities in life.

In the past, Alleyne said, the group has organized several community service events, such as packaging food for Africa and participating in fundraising walks in Hartford.

Last year, Alleyne’s group mobilized their efforts behind HARC, an organization that benefits individuals with intellectual disabilities by creating a photo shoot at a Christmas party and donating the proceeds from the sales of the photos to the organization.

Last spring, members of Jack and Jill nominated Alleyne for recognition at the Hartford Girls Rock! event. After Alleyne submitted an essay, the event organizers notified her that she had been selected for the award.

Last summer, Alleyne attended a series of workshops, including Goal-Setting, Career Exploration, and Self-Empowerment, that were facilitated by members of the chapter.

Alleyne said of the event, “Sitting in front of all these people at the brunch, you realize how AKA really wants to help and support us. It’s wonderful to meet people in your community, hear their stories and learn about different perspectives. When you help to improve the community that you live in, it’s ultimately affecting you, too.”

Kingswood Oxford is the preeminent independent co-ed college preparatory day school in West HArtford, just steps from Blue Back Square. It serves 508 students from 62 towns in Connecticut, western Massachusetts and China. A KO education fosters confident communicators, ethical leaders and innovative problem solvers.