Harrisburg, PA – Today, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful (KPB) announced the 2025-2026 cohort of Young Ambassadors of Pennsylvania. The Young Ambassadors program, now in its fourth year, is an initiative designed to cultivate the passion and leadership of young community stewards. By providing access to essential resources, the program empowers these ambassadors to actively promote a shared vision of a clean and beautiful Pennsylvania within their own communities.
From September through May 2026, Ambassadors will develop civic leadership skills and gain hands-on experience as they champion and advocate for clean and beautiful communities across Pennsylvania.
“Restoring and preventing environmental damage means making sure our future leaders have the ecological know-how to make sustainable change happen,” said PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll. “Youth across the state are more engaged in this fight than ever before. With the fourth year of the Young Ambassadors program underway, Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful and PennDOT are helping plant the seeds for a cleaner future.”
Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful will award two $1000 scholarships -- one to a current senior in the Young Ambassadors program and one to an alum of the program.
"We’re excited to kick off the fourth year of the Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful Young Ambassador Program! Each year, these amazing young leaders bring fresh ideas and real energy to our communities. We continue to be inspired by the passion, creativity, and leadership they demonstrate. We’re proud to support this next generation of changemakers," said Shannon Reiter, President, Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful.
2025-2026 Young Ambassadors of PA
- Laila King, 12th grade, Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts School, Allegheny County
- Vidhi Patel, 12th grade, Bensalem High School, Bucks County
- Nitasha Sharma, 12th grade, Bensalem High School, Bucks County
- Lily Crowley, 12th grade, Knoch High School, Butler County
- Avi Gairola, 12th grade, Conestoga High School, Chester County
- Lily Greenwood, 12th grade, Bayard Rustin High School, Chester County
- Ryan McLoughlin, 11th grade , Octorara Area Jr./Sr. High School, Chester County
- Arohi Nepal, 12th grade, Conestoga High School, Chester County
- Connor Thompson, 12th grade, DuBois Area Senior High School, Clearfield County
- Leah Heisler, 10th grade, Cedar Cliff High School, Cumberland County
- Twisha Vanamala, 11th grade, Cumberland Valley High School, Cumberland County
- Claire Walker, 11th grade, Hershey High School, Dauphin County
- Evangelia Eliades, 12th grade, Penn Wood High School, Delaware County
- Mariya Hoja, 10th grade, Fairview High School, Erie County
- Chloe Smith, 10th grade, Fairview High School, Erie County
- Logan Thompson, 10th grade, Fairview High School, Erie County
- Laurel Lindey, 11th grade, Brownsville Area High School, Fayette County
- Quinn Coulter, 10th grade, Waynesboro Area Senior High School, Franklin County
- Ojas Batheja, 12th grade, Parkland High School, Lehigh County
- Arun Ghanta, 10th grade, Spring-Ford High School, Montgomery County
- Max LaBarbera, 12th grade, Spring-Ford Senior High School, Montgomery County
- Gabby Moor, 10th grade, Abington Senior High School, Montgomery County
- Willie Waerig, 12th grade, Plymouth Whitemarsh High School, Montgomery County
- Madeline White, 12th grade, Gwynedd Mercy Academy High School, Montgomery County
- Nathaniel Carso, 11th grade, Delaware Valley High School, Pike County
- Colin McGinley, 11th grade, Pottsville Area High School, Schuylkill County
- Maddie Skinkis, 11th grade, California Area High School, Washington County
- Ryana Zhelezov, 11th grade, Dallastown Area High School, York County
Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful will provide education and training to program participants on topics related to the impacts of litter, litter prevention, waste management and recycling, civic engagement and related public policy, volunteer management, and social media marketing. Ambassadors will have an opportunity to apply for job shadowing with Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania funded by the NiSource Charitable Foundation. Selected students will spend the day in the field with sustainability professionals. Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful will provide a stipend to participants to support time and travel expenses.
For more information about the program and the Young Ambassadors, visit the program page or contact Kylie McCutcheon at kmccutcheon@keeppabeautiful.org.
The Young Ambassador program was recommended in the commonwealth’s Litter Action Plan, announced by the Wolf administration in 2021 in response to a 2019 Pennsylvania Litter Research Study, which found Pennsylvania has more than 500 million pieces of litter on its roadways. The action plan includes strategies for all Pennsylvanians to fight litter in their communities.
PennDOT provides many additional litter cleanup volunteer opportunities, including Adopt-A-Highway, Litter Brigades, and more at their roadside beautification web page.
Find PennDOT news on X, Facebook, and Instagram.
MEDIA CONTACT: Zachary Appleby, 717-783-8800 or zappleby@pa.gov
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