Student Spotlight: Zoe Trinidad-Rooted in Community
Zoe Trinidad has lived in the Bronx her entire life, and for the past several years, TYWLS Bronx has felt like home too. Having attended the school since sixth grade, Zoe has grown into someone who sees the people around her, teachers, staff, and classmates alike, not just as her school community, but as family.
That sense of connection shows up in how she gives back. TYWLS Bronx requires 100 hours of community service to graduate, Zoe is already approaching 400, accumulated in just her freshman and sophomore years alone. She has made giving back a habit rather than an obligation.
Zoe Trinidad
Zoe’s list of activities is a long one. She plays on her school’s varsity volleyball team, serves as a basketball team manager, and is part of her school’s Student Union. This year, she’s adding something new to that list, launching a chapter of Bring Change to Mind, a national nonprofit focused on reducing the stigma around mental health, at TYWLS Bronx. Zoe hopes to open up conversations about mental well-being for her peers, a cause she feels is more important than ever.
This past summer, Zoe stepped outside her comfort zone with a data science internship at Fordham University, her very first, where she worked alongside peers on a group project examining gentrification. While she discovered data science isn’t quite her path, the experience reaffirmed what already excites her most: psychology, the major she plans to study in college.
If there’s one thing Zoe hopes people take away from her story, it’s this, she’s a community person at heart. Her plan for the future is simple, and deeply rooted in where she started, to keep giving back, to her school, to Student Leadership Network, and to the people who’ve supported her along the way.
