photo by: Contributed

Wendo Kimori

What motivates Free State senior Wendo Kimori’s work in racial equity — which has earned her a Princeton Prize in Race Relations — goes all the way back to her elementary school days.

Kimori said in most of her classes she was the only Black kid and sometimes the only student of color, and she got bullied a lot in elementary school for the color of her skin and for her name. Kimori, whose first name means “love” in her Kenyan parent’s native Kikuyu language, said that included comments about her dark skin tone, a girl speaking to her in an imitation of an African dialect and at one point in middle school a kid making monkey sounds at her. She said she wanted the experience of other kids of color to be better, and to make sure those who were struggling knew that things could turn around for them as they did for her.

“Understanding that their story, whether they feel like they’re being misjudged based on who they are, that their story doesn’t have to end there,” Kimori said. “And they can continue the work.”

Kimori’s work has included serving on the Superintendent’s Student Advisory Council, the district’s Equity Advisory Council, helping start a mentorship program for Lawrence middle school students, and spearheading the formation of Lawrence’s NAACP Youth Council, where she is the founder and president.

Lawrence Superintendent Anthony Lewis said he first met Kimori in 2018, when he was doing a listening tour for district families after beginning his position. He said attendees were broken into small groups and asked about the strengths and challenges of the district, and it was Kimori who stood up among the many adults to speak on behalf of her group.

“This little person stands up, she had to be in middle school at that time, and just delivers a response from the group that just summed up everything they had talked about, and then added her own perspective on it,” Lewis said. “… I said once I get my Superintendent Student Advisory Council formed, I definitely want her to be a part of it.”

And Lewis said in the years since then, Kimori has kept standing up. He said she shares her thoughts about what students of color experience, asks difficult questions and suggests ideas to improve equity in the district — for example, to recruit more teachers of color to teach advanced placement classes to help increase diversity in the AP program.

“She is very bold, with regard to not being shy about sharing with me the reality of what students, first of all, are experiencing, and then what students of color are experiencing in the school,” Lewis said.

She’s also turned ideas into action. When the Equity Council reviewed student discipline rates that showed a higher number of incidents at Liberty Memorial Central Middle School, Kimori helped start a peer mentorship program to connect Central students with high school students.

Kimori said a couple dozen Central students have been involved in the program, which she said aims to provide guidance and mentoring to students who may need it the most. She said some of the kids may not see the “road map” ahead of them, how they might go to college or what other goals they might want to pursue. She said the peer mentors visited the students at their school and chatted with them about their goals and what they want to accomplish. Recently, she said the mentors gave the middle school students personalized tours of their high schools, talking with them about how they’ve been able to stay focused, get through challenges and be successful.

“We’ve helped them realize they have a right to explore their potential and that they can be anything they want to be,” Kimori said.

For other students who want to advance equity, Kimori has also helped point the way. After connecting with Lawrence NAACP Vice President Doris Ricks, Kimori started Lawrence’s NAACP Youth Council in November 2022. She hopes it will act as a platform for students like her who want to make change.

“I wanted to start a group where people had that platform to act on their ideas to advance equity in our community,” Kimori said.

Lewis said he was not surprised when he heard Kimori had been awarded a Princeton Prize in Race Relations.

“I couldn’t think of anyone better,” Lewis said. “I wasn’t too surprised, because that’s just her.”

For her part, Kimori said she was proud to be among the many students working toward equity, and that for her it was “very affirming.”

“I think a lot of people in my same area, who do the kinds of work that I do, we don’t always get recognized,” Kimori said. “So to get that recognition and to receive such a prestigious honor, I was so humbled and so grateful and really appreciative.”

The Princeton Prize in Race Relations recognizes high school students who, through their volunteer activities, have undertaken significant efforts to advance racial equity and understanding in their schools or communities, according to the award’s website. Recipients from 28 regions across the country receive an award of $1,000 and are invited to participate in a symposium on race, which is taking place on the Princeton campus April 27-29. Kimori is the recipient for the Kansas City region.

As far as her plans after high school, Kimori, who is not yet saying where she has decided to attend college, said she will be majoring in communications with an emphasis in public relations and hopes to afterward attend law school. Kimori said people can learn more about the Lawrence NAACP Youth Council on its Facebook page and at NAACPYouthCouncil.LK on Instagram.