Creative, Talented and Inspiring High School Students Chosen for This Year’s Disney Dreamers Academy at Walt Disney World Resort

Exclusive Walt Disney World Resort mentoring event fosters dreams of Black students and teens from underrepresented communities; 100 outstanding students from New York to California to be part of the multi-day event in March

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (Jan. 13, 2023) – A budding artist, an aspiring neurosurgeon and a creative storyteller are among the 100 talented high school students selected for this year’s Disney Dreamers Academy, an educational mentoring program hosted at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.

The 100 students from across the country will descend on Walt Disney World Resort March 23-26 for the 16^th annual event, aimed at broadening career awareness and creating exclusive opportunities for Black students and teens from underrepresented communities across America.

To kick off the announcement of the 2023 class, Mickey Mouse, Disney executives, and international recording star Kelly Rowland surprised one of the students with the news of her selection live on national TV from her school in Newark, N. J. Afterwards, the names of the entire Class of 2023 were displayed on a Times Square billboard.

Rowland, the four-time Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, actress and television executive producer, served last year as the program’s ambassador and as an advocate for the students. She shared personal insights, drawing from her own unique experience as a pre-teen performer, then as a teenager in one of the best-selling female groups of all time, Destiny’s Child.

The Disney Dreamers program is an important part of Disney’s commitment to support diverse communities. By encouraging the next generation to think big, Disney hopes the students will carry what they learn back home and continue pursuing their dreams.

“We’re ready to welcome another outstanding group of teens from across the country for our 16^th year!” said Tracey Powell, Disney Signature Experiences vice president and Disney Dreamers Academy executive champion. “They are going to have the experience of a lifetime, setting them on a journey to go out and achieve their dreams, just like the classes who came before them.”

Since 2008, Disney Dreamers Academy has inspired more than 1,500 students from across the country by fueling their dreams and showing them a world of possibilities as they prepare for their futures. In the years following, graduates have become storytellers, artists, engineers, innovators, journalists and more, and have transitioned into mentors to the Disney Dreamers who follow them.

Each year, the Disney Dreamers are selected from thousands of applicants who answer essay questions about their personal stories and dreams for the future. The students and a parent or guardian enjoy an all-expenses paid trip to Walt Disney World Resort in Florida for the four-day event.

The Disney Dreamers embark on a journey throughout the Walt Disney World theme parks and behind the scenes of the 40-square-mile vacation destination. It is a vibrant classroom where students discover new career opportunities, pursue their dreams and interact with Disney executives, educators, business leaders, celebrities and motivational speakers.

Students participate in immersive, career-oriented workshops that explore a wide range of career disciplines while also learning essential skills, such as effective communication techniques, leadership and networking strategies.

Past celebrity participants have included stars from the big screen and television, noted sports figures and popular musicians, as well as personalities and cast members from across the Disney family, including “Good Morning America,’’ ESPN, Disney Channel and the ABC TV series “Black-ish” and “Grown-ish.”

For more information, visit DisneyDreamersAcademy.com. Regular updates about Disney Dreamers Academy are also available on social media at Facebook.com/DisneyDreamersAcademy, Twitter.com/DreamersAcademy and Instagram.com/disneydreamersacademy.

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The 100 students selected for the 2023 Disney Dreamers Academy are (listed by state):

First Name	Last Name	City	State
Chelsea	Williams	Hoover	AL
Radhika	Pant	Hoover	AL
Tyler	Chiu	Northridge	CA
Ella	Milstein	La Jolla	CA
Rashad	Tyler	Highland	CA
Ryan	Nelson	Concord	CA
Tina	Mai	Newport Coast	CA
Octavia	Carey	Inglewood	CA
Isabella	Cabello	Tulare	CA
Madison	Henderson	Los Angeles	CA
Brooke	Sibala	Chula Vista	CA
Sanvi	Prakash	San Ramon	CA
Cisco	Hernandez	National City	CA
Melanie	Cho	Alhambra	CA
April	Ortiz	Anaheim	CA
Casey	Folau	Maywood	CA
Xavier	Forbes	San Diego	CA
Allison	Jensen	Thornton	CO
Jonathan	De Caro	Moodus	CT
Yasmeen	Galal	Prospect	CT
Mary Amma	Blankson	Madison	CT
Miguel	Coppedge	Washington	DC
Sophia	Juroviesky	Boca Raton	FL
Dorsey	Miller	Parkland	FL
Zara	Lwin	Orlando	FL
Sophia	Dupeyron	Cape Coral	FL
Kaitlyn	Jadevaia	Sarasota	FL
Megan	Fajardo	Destin	FL
Kimora	Reed	Saint Petersburg	FL
Cynthia	Medina	Bradenton	FL
Cameron	West	Jacksonville	FL
Sara	Kaufman	Hollywood	FL
Noah	Spinelli	Orlando	FL
Pamela	Musungu	Acworth	GA
Zachariah	Hickey	Bonaire	GA
Ava	Flanigan	Morrow	GA
Ava	Adams	Atlanta	GA
Jordan	Adeyemi	Duluth	GA
Pippa	Key	Summerville	GA
Jaden	Jenkins	Augusta	GA
Kirasten	Perkins	Savannah	GA
Erin	Shen	Statesboro	GA
Dylan	Jones	Smyrna	GA
Bradley Ross	Jackson	Normal	IL
Tamaya	Mcneal	Joliet	IL
Nora	Sun	Chicago	IL
Nyla	Bishop	Flossmoor	IL
Aramia	Gutierrez	Whiting	IN
Jaylynn	Powe	Baton Rouge	LA
Charles	Steele	Slidell	LA
Audrey	Brust	Zachary	LA
Tasneem	Ghadiali	Lexington	MA
Xin Yue	Lu	Lutherville Timonium	MD
Aria	Smith	Upper Marlboro	MD
Lindsey	Sands	Columbia	MD
Makayla	Joaquin	Fort Washington	MD
Saniyah	Ikard	Bowie	MD
Natalyn	Taylor	Ellicott City	MD
Julian	Morris	Saginaw	MI
Keenan	Burns	Redford	MI
Preston	Zabinko	Ann Arbor	MI
Addison	Richmond	Jackson	MI
Kennedy	Jones	Berkeley	MO
Zania	Stinson	Charlotte	NC
Jada	Stewart	Wilson	NC
Ryan	Razon	Morrisville	NC
Mosope	Aina	Newark	NJ
Elise	Tao	Upper Saddle River	NJ
Maria	Maione	Egg Harbor City	NJ
Claudia	Merchan	Hackensack	NJ
Amechi	Chukwujiorah-Strange	Flushing	NY
Autumn	Tyler	Chester	NY
Morgan	Lin	Brooklyn	NY
Emily	Melendez	Rego Park	NY
Logan	Williams	Cleveland	OH
Sophia	Barbee	Maineville	OH
Mckinley	Meeker	Hudson	OH
Kyle	Zhou	Solon	OH
Aziza	Mccarter	Jenks	OK
Neighujah	Harmon	Oklahoma City	OK
Amelia	Godard	Sherwood	OR
Eliza	Watkins	Portland	OR
Anjana	Pramod	West Chester	PA
Prerna	Chakkingal	Mc Donald	PA
Joslyn	Diffenbaugh	Kutztown	PA
Tavis	Sanders	Philadelphia	PA
Sydney	Simmons	Tiverton	RI
Benjamin	Brown	Columbia	SC
Hannah	Hollings	Brentwood	TN
Toluwakitan	Akinsola	Antioch	TN
Sydney	Roberts	Plano	TX
Yaddeni	Hailu	Lewisville	TX
Shane	Mushambi	Missouri City	TX
Medha	Pulluru	Cedar Park	TX
Alvaro	Alvarez	Elgin	TX
Elle	Chavis	Dallas	TX
Nia	Curry	Trophy Club	TX
Tierra	Brown	Pearland	TX
Eliora Margaret	Kwakye	Olympia	WA
Julius	Zakaria	Oak Creek	WI

About Disney Dreamers Academy:

Established by Walt Disney World in 2008, Disney Dreamers Academy’s mission is to inspire young leaders to dream beyond imagination by providing life-long access to personalized support for the Disney Dreamer, their caregivers and community through insightful content and uplifting experts, mentors, and sponsors. Each year, 100 high school students are awarded a trip to Walt Disney World Resort in Florida to experience the immersive and transformational program.