PSHS Junior Captures Princeton Award on Race Relations

June 5, 2009

Sarith D. Levi, a junior at Plano Senior High School, has been awarded with The University of Princeton Award on Race Relations. She was honored at an April 23 ceremony held at the Arts Center in Dallas. Miss Levi, who was nominated by Teacher Beth Smith, was also invited to the Symposium on Race Relations held in early May at Princeton University where she was scheduled to meet with the school's president, faculty, community leaders as well as alumni who have contributed to the $1,000 monetary award.

The Princeton Prize on Race Relations is an annual award that is given to high school students for outstanding efforts to improve race relations in their schools or communities. Princeton alumni volunteers in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and 22 other regions across the United States reward students in grades 9-12 who have made a serious commitment to bettering race relations.

Miss Levi, who has been in all honors and AP classes since the ninth grade, has also played the violin in her schools' orchestras for six years. In addition, she plays the piano in her free time.

She has also been involved in Girl Scouts. She loves art and especially loves to draw real life sketches of people. She has taken German in school for three years and can understand Spanish almost fluently.

She said that she also enjoys writing stories and poetry - anything artistic usually catches her attention. "I love to read more than anything else," said Miss Levi. "I usually read at least one book a week. My favorite class is AP English because it allows me to do all my favorite things - reading and writing."

Her future plans involve majoring in international business and possibly minoring in linguistics. Her top college choices for now are UTA and Princeton.

"My favorite quote regarding race relations would have to be a quote by Benito Juarez," said Miss Levi.

"Entre los individuos como entre las naciones, el respeto al derecho ajeno es la paz."

“Among individuals, as among nations, respect for the rights of others is peace."