FREDERICKSBURG, Va. (AP) — Courtland High School graduate Kendall Levinsohn started the nonprofit Helping Wheel, which provides financial aid to students from low-income households to pay for fees associated with after-school activities, such as sports and clubs, and to take AP exams.
When Kendall Levinsohn was a student at Courtland High School in Spotsylvania County, she had a few conversations that she couldn't stop thinking about.
One was with a parent she met at a school sporting event when she was a freshman. Levinsohn was on the cheer team, and the parent told her that she wished her child could participate in school sports, but the associated fees made it impossible.
Another was with her history teacher, who told her he paid out of his own pocket for students with financial needs to take Advanced Placement exams.
"Which is significant, considering teacher salaries," Levinsohn said. "I had more conversations like this and I really began to see a need."
Levinsohn, 17, finished high school in three years and graduated last year. Last fall, she began setting up her own nonprofit to meet that need.
Helping Wheel, which received 501(c)3 nonprofit status in June, provides financial aid to students from low-income households to be able to participate in after-school activities, such as sports and clubs and to take AP exams.
The organization, which operates within Spotsylvania County high schools, can also pay for athletic equipment, which it is able to purchase at a discount through a partnership with Play It Again Sports in Fredericksburg.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Levinsohn conducted a supply drive for Her Drive, which collects bras and menstrual care items for people in need, with her friend Kyleigh Foy. She also volunteered with local nonprofits such as Olde Dominion Humane Society and Love Thy Neighbor, a food pantry in King George County, and worked with the local health department to organize a vaccine clinic in King George.
"Seeing how everything was during COVID showed me how much help people really need," Levinsohn said.
Connections with fellow nonprofit workers made during that time were helpful when she was setting up her own organization, she said.
Levinsohn said her dad and a friend, Seth Christenson, also helped her organize Helping Wheel.
Helping Wheel has received some funding from the local Elks lodge and Levinsohn said she wants to organize a community fundraising event at the Fredericksburg Fairgrounds next year.
The organization is accepting applications now for its first round of grants.
Levinsohn—who is now a student at Germanna Community College and plans to transfer to a four-year college to study political science and international affairs—said she picked out the name for her nonprofit years ago, before its mission had even taken shape.
"The wheel represents circles and constant rotation," she said. "It's about how we are ever-changing and always moving."
Levinsohn's future plans include going to law school and becoming a federal public defender. She said she hopes to change a perception that teenagers aren't educated about needs in their communities and offered to help other students set up their own organizations to give back.
"I hope I can inspire other teenagers," she said. "I think the scary part for kids is they believe they don't have resources. There are bad people out there, but there are lots of good people who are willing to help."
