Meet This Year’s Winners
Gamechangers, trailblazers, trendsetters — this year’s Her Campus e.l.f.ing amazing 22 Under 22 winners are all that and so much more! We teamed up with e.l.f. Cosmetics to launch a search for the year’s most inspiring people 22 and under. The goal? To celebrate their accomplishments and inspire others to chase their dreams.
From activists to artists, athletes, entrepreneurs, and beyond, we received thousands of incredible applications, and we’re so excited to reveal our winners. Meet the 22 Under 22 class of 2024 below, and find out what makes them e.l.f.ing amazing!
Editor: Katy Gioeli • Designer: Megan Charles • This is a sponsored feature. All opinions are 100% from Her Campus. © Her Campus Media 2024
Meet This Year’s Winners
Abbie McAdams
Making Menstrual Products More Accessible For All
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Alexandra "Zandy" Wong
Creating A World Where Accessibility Is Universal
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Aliza Lopez
Improving Equity In Healthcare Through Research & Education
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Avalon
Zborovsky-Fenster
Using Social Media To Help Others Break Into Their Careers
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Damilola
Awofisayo
Using Coding & Computer Science To Cultivate Social Good
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Isabella Mandis
Empowering Young Women To Enter & Excel In The Venture Capital Field
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Jaychele Schenck
Fostering Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion On Campus & Beyond
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Kailyn Dunlap
Running A Hair Business That Helps Black Women Flourish
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Karolina Dubiel
Providing Accessible Aerospace Education To Young Women Worldwide
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Mariah Barrera
Creating Documentaries That Amplify Themes Of Social Justice & Equity
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Jeeva
Senthilnathan
Stepping Up To Serve — & Lead — Her Community
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Molly Smith
Inspiring Positive Change Through Visual Storytelling
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Michaela
Mckenzie
Expressing Herself Through Dance & Theater
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Neha Shukla
Empowering Young Women To Solve Community Challenges Through Technology
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Pratika Katiyar
Bringing Visibility To Press Freedom, Human Rights, & Tech Policy Issues
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Skyler Basco
Inspiring The Next Generation Of Product Managers In Tech
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Rachel Labi
Providing Young People With Accessible Financial Education
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Sophia Kianni
Making Climate Education More Accessible To
Non-English Speakers
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Ssanyu Lukoma
Connecting Young Readers With Diverse Literature
Read More +
Swetha Tandri
Teaching Math Concepts Through Song
Read More +
Tahirah Abdul-Qadir
Empowering Female Athletes Through Martial Arts
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Bella Bucknor
Creating A Campus Community With A Love For The Art Of Stepping
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Abbie McAdams Making Menstrual Products More Accessible For All University of Denver ‘24
At 21 years old, Abbie has already reached a handful of remarkable milestones — starting with co-founding and serving as the executive director of Red Equity, an organization dedicated to promoting menstrual equity and ending period poverty. Through her work, she has trained hundreds of youth advocates, distributed thousands of product donations, helped pass legislation on menstrual equity in multiple states, and lobbied Congress in D.C. for SNAP benefit coverage for menstrual products. Most recently, representatives across Colorado have signed on and introduced a bill Abbie wrote, which aims to put period products in Colorado public schools. Her passion for change drives her to lead, serve, and fight for what she believes in.
Alexandra "Zandy" Wong Creating A World Where Accessibility Is Universal Johns Hopkins University ‘24
Many people dream of a world where accessibility is universal, and Zandy is making that dream a reality. As an accessibility advocate and researcher, she’s spent her college years researching hearing loss and hearing healthcare access, partnering with Gen Z organizations to make their digital content fully accessible, and sharing her own story of growing up with hearing loss on industry panels, podcasts, and global stages. She has also advised the U.S. Department of Labor and state legislators on creating policies to help disabled youth transition into higher education and workplace environments. In the future, she hopes to become a physician while continuing her advocacy work.
Aliza Lopez Improving Equity In Healthcare Through Research & Education University of Rochester ‘27
For Aliza, equity in healthcare isn’t just the goal — it’s the standard. From directing the Medicine Encompassed organization to spearheading a national, socio-ecological research study addressing variables that affect the mental health of individuals in first-gen, low-income, and POC communities, her work as a health equity advocate takes on many forms. She’s also an accomplished public speaker, having presented about mental health, cultural competency, and other important topics to global audiences. But she’s not stopping there. After graduation, she hopes to implement more DEI-based standards in healthcare and cultural resource assessments, become a pediatric neurosurgeon, and continue educating others about the importance of DEI in medicine.
Avalon Zborovsky-Fenster Using Social Media To Help Others Break Into Their Careers Barnard College of Columbia University ‘24
You may know Avalon as “internship girl,” the creator dedicated to connecting her nearly 300,000 followers with early career education as a matter of advancing women's status around the world. But her impact doesn’t stop there — she’s also an award-winning community organizer who has interned with and supported global policy and government teams at multiple major companies, worked with the personal offices of political leaders, and interned in both houses of Congress. Plus, she’s the founder of two organizations: The Columbia Journal of Science, Tech, Ethics, and Policy, and The 116th Initiative, a mutual aid collective working to support students in need on her campus. Up next, Avalon will be heading to law school, and she hopes to use her education to continue to support women around the world.
Bella Bucknor Creating A Campus Community With A Love For The Art Of Stepping New York University ‘25
For many 16-year-olds, graduation and college feel eons away; but when Bella was 16, she was already pursuing her degree in Psychology at NYU. Enrolling in college at a young age was a pivotal step that helped Bella grow her leadership skills and led to a series of impactful achievements. Most notably, she channeled her passion for dance into founding the E.L.I.T.E Steppers, a revival of NYU’s step team that had been inactive for several years. The group has become a thriving community, where members not only bond over their shared love of step, but also enjoy a safe, welcoming space for creative expression, cultural appreciation, and personal development.
Damilola Awofisayo Using Coding & Computer Science To Cultivate Social Good Duke University ‘26
It’s not every day that your work receives recognition from one of tech’s most prominent CEOs, but for Damilola, it’s just one of many incredible accomplishments. She’s the co-creator of TecHacks, a nonprofit hackathon whose mission is to provide young women with a supportive environment for creating, problem-solving, and showcasing their talents. Through her involvement in hackathons and coding competitions, she has built more than 10 mobile apps and coding projects, all of which are focused on social good. Today, she’s the co-founder and chief operating officer of Skalara, a startup aiming to use generative AI to help automate project management for small tech teams, entrepreneurs, and indie developers.
Isabella Mandis Empowering Young Women To Enter & Excel In The Venture Capital Field Harvard University ‘26
When Isabella began exploring the venture capital (VC) industry, she quickly noticed a glaring gender disparity: Very few women occupied venture capitalist, firm partner, and board member positions. She knew things needed to change, so she launched Girls Into VC, the first organization dedicated to supporting female founders and empowering young women to enter and excel in the venture capital field. The group educates and inspires its 3,500+ members through educational resources, mentorship opportunities, events, and more, ultimately creating an environment where young women can thrive.
Jaychele Schenck Fostering Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion On Campus & Beyond Bentley University ‘26
Meet Jaychele: a college sophomore with a passion for diversity, equity, and inclusion. As the inaugural DEI Chair for Bentley’s Black United Body, she’s already had a big impact on campus, leading transformative initiatives and crafting the group’s first-ever DEI policy. Beyond her on-campus work, she’s working to improve DEI in media and pop culture, starting with her documentary, Wrestling with Whiteness, which highlights Black experiences in the wrestling community. Jaychele dreams of becoming a next-generation DEI trailblazer, contributing to a world where the representation of Black and Brown individuals in media is abundant.
Jeeva Senthilnathan Stepping Up To Serve — & Lead — Her Community Colorado School of Mines ‘24
Jeeva didn’t let challenges in her early life knock her down; instead, she transformed her experiences into an unwavering commitment to serve marginalized and BIPOC communities. Today, she is a visionary activist and fierce advocate for everything from human rights to environmental justice and foundational education. During her first two years pursuing a degree in mechanical engineering, she ran for the Parker, Colorado city council, earning 4.66% of votes against 11 candidates in the 2020 general election and 9.37% of votes against six candidates in the April 2021 special election. Her ultimate goal is to become a congresswoman in the U.S. House of Representatives, where she hopes to focus on bringing her engineering skills to public policy.
Kailyn Dunlap Running A Hair Business That Helps Black Women Flourish Howard University ‘25
To Kailyn, creating a beauty company that makes people feel their best goes beyond selling products; it means fostering a positive and uplifting customer experience. This has always been her goal as the sole owner of Shop Kai D. Kollection, the e-commerce hair business she launched in 2019. Kailyn is also the owner of a hair vending machine business in the DMV area, which provides convenient access to wigs, hair extensions, lashes, and more. And, as part of her commitment to her community, she founded an annual scholarship that helps first-year, first-generation HBCU students cover expenses for textbooks and other necessities. Kailyn is the perfect example of the amazing things that happen when you combine your passions with your purpose.
Karolina Dubiel Providing Accessible Aerospace Education To Young Women Worldwide Georgia Institute of Technology ‘26
Karolina’s ultimate passions are space and aviation, and her ultimate goal is to bring that passion to underrepresented women and girls around the globe. In addition to beginning her pilot’s license at 15 years old, she founded the Girls in Aerospace Foundation (GIA), a global non-profit dedicated to providing accessible aerospace education and opportunities to young women worldwide. Since then, GIA has touched the lives of more than 40,000 individuals through one-on-one aerospace mentorship programs, webinars, in-person events, and so much more. All of GIA’s work leads back to its founder’s mission of allowing other girls to experience the joys of flying and exploring the cosmos.
Mariah Barrera Creating Documentaries That Amplify Themes Of Social Justice & Equity Columbia University ‘25
Films have the power to bring visibility to often-overlooked narratives and life experiences, and Mariah’s work as an award-winning Mexican-American filmmaker and writer is a testament to that. She’s turned her passion for storytelling into a mission to amplify themes of social justice and equity through film, covering everything from gentrification to cultural assimilation. Mariah uses poetry to bridge the gap between narrative and documentary in her work, and she draws inspiration from her family and community’s experiences living in the urban Midwest. She’s currently exhibiting her latest film, Still Here, which follows three brothers affected by violence, poverty, and prison.
Michaela Mckenzie Expressing Herself Through Dance & Theater Alabama State University ‘24
Michaela is at home wherever she can let her creativity shine, whether that’s on the stage dancing and acting or in the studio teaching young dancers in her community. She’s the youngest recipient of an artistic fellowship that allowed her to write, direct, and star in her first major original dance theater project titled Vonnie. Michaela’s talents have also earned her opportunities to study dance at renowned institutes and ballet companies. In addition to her passion for dance, she enjoys giving back to her community, which prompted her to start a dance theater camp in Montgomery, Alabama, where she teaches dance and theater skills to local children.
Molly Smith Inspiring Positive Change Through Visual Storytelling Yale University ‘25
Molly’s love of using film as a means of activism began in high school when she created Dear America, an award-winning short film about gun violence. Now a junior at Yale, she continues to create films about important topics like domestic violence, feminism, and women’s rights. Molly’s work also highlights pieces of her own life: Her latest film, The Happiest and Saddest I’ve Ever Been, is about the best friends who supported her throughout the ups and downs of her freshman year. She’s also in post-production for a project that documents her experience being diagnosed and treated for ovarian cancer while in college, and she hopes it will inspire anyone who sees it.
Neha Shukla Empowering Young Women To Solve Community Challenges Through Technology Duke University ‘27
Neha’s journey with building technology for social good began in her makeshift bedroom lab, where at 15 years old she taught herself to code and build sensor hardware. This is also where she developed her first invention, SixFeetApart, a wearable social-distancing device designed to slow the spread of COVID-19. Since then, she’s been on a mission to amplify women’s voices in technology by running global innovation workshops that have reached over 75,000 students, collaborating with peers and lawmakers to push for ethical AI policies, and publishing her bestselling book, Innovation for Everyone.
Pratika Katiyar Bringing Visibility To Press Freedom, Human Rights, & Tech Policy Issues Northeastern University ‘24
As a nationally recognized writer of color, Pratika is dedicated to sparking change, one word at a time. Her work focuses on press freedom, technology policy, and bodily autonomy issues, and she’s been published in multiple major media outlets. In addition to her work as a journalist, she’s also a fierce advocate for freedom of the press; she spearheaded a nationwide campaign for world press freedom addressing issues like online harassment of journalists and recently spoke at the United Nations World Press Freedom Day Conference. Resilience defines her approach to her work, and she plans to carry that resilience into her post-grad chapter as she pursues a career in public-interest law while continuing to make a meaningful impact on the world.
Rachel Labi Providing Young People With Accessible Financial Education Purdue University ‘25
Financial education leads to economic empowerment, and Rachel is working to ensure everyone has access to it. Her journey began in high school when she advocated for a mandatory personal finance class to over 400 policymakers across Indiana. But Rachel didn’t want her advocacy to rely on legislation, so she co-founded Building Financial Freedom (BFF), an organization dedicated to helping young people reach economic stability and financial achievement through education. BFF collaborates with diverse institutions to host engaging events, create tailored financial content, and conduct educational presentations. Rachel has also appeared on multiple podcasts and was a keynote speaker for the Symposium on Global Money Week in 2023.
Skyler Basco Inspiring The Next Generation Of Product Managers In Tech Western Governors University ‘25
If you’re looking to break into a product management (PM) career at a big tech company, Skyler has your back. She’s a top product management voice on social media, has interned at one of the largest tech companies in the world three times, and creates fun, interactive content to help her 25,000 followers enter and exceed in the field. Her work empowering technologists doesn’t stop there, though; in 2024, she’s working towards her goal of reaching one million followers on social media so she can continue inspiring the next generation of product managers. From there, she hopes to use her platform to become a philanthropist and donate tech products to those in need.
Sophia Kianni Making Climate Education More Accessible To Non-English Speakers Stanford University ‘25
Climate change affects everyone, but climate education isn’t always accessible to everyone — and Sophia, an award-winning climate activist, is here to change that. She founded Climate Cardinals, an international, youth-led non-profit working to make climate education more accessible to non-English speakers. Since its founding, the group has grown to have 15 college-aged directors and 10,000 volunteers in 80 countries. Climate Cardinals has translated 1.5 million words of climate education resources into over 100 languages. In addition to running her non-profit, Sophia is the youngest United Nations advisor in U.S. history and was recently appointed to serve on the Environmental Protection Agency’s National Youth Advisory Council.
Ssanyu Lukoma Connecting Young Readers With Diverse Literature Howard University ‘27
Ssanyu’s journey as a literacy advocate began at just 13 years old when she founded Brown Kids Read, a non-profit organization dedicated to motivating children (especially children of color) to read more diverse books. Since then, she’s launched the Brown Reads Bookshelf, an online and pop-up bookstore prioritizing work from authors of color. She has also published two children’s books, Suubi’s Sunny Smile and Chi-Chi’s Toothy Grin, through her publishing company, Share a Smile Books, and is an accomplished public speaker, delivering inspirational speeches for corporate audiences and leading goal-setting workshops for middle and high school students. To top it all off, Ssanyu was crowned Miss HBCU Teen in 2023.
Swetha Tandri Teaching Math Concepts Through Song University of Texas at Austin ‘25
What if that song you have stuck in your head right now could help you ace your next math exam? This is the idea behind Melodies for Math, the math education business Swetha founded where she teaches math concepts through songs. While balancing her busy schedule as a third-year computer science student and running her business, she’s been able to grow Melodies for Math to have 106,000 followers across social media. Swetha is also the co-creator of IMPACT10, a 10-week, cohort-based boot camp that equips high school students with the digital and AI skills they need to succeed in today’s AI-driven world. With both projects, her goal is to create a world where learning is fun.
Tahirah Abdul-Qadir Empowering Female Athletes Through Martial Arts Syracuse University ‘26
Tahirah isn’t just an award-winning social justice advocate; she’s also a renowned international martial arts champion who represents the U.S. in kickboxing, boxing, and karate. Her passion for mental, physical, and emotional health and gender equity in sports drives her to ignite change in the world, from organizing panels with professional female athletes to serving as a role model for underrepresented women in combat sports. Tahirah is also the founder of Fight Like A Girl, an organization dedicated to empowering women through martial arts workshops, youth mentorship, and more. Plus, she works with on-campus organizations to host self-defense seminars that help students feel safer and more confident.
Abbie McAdams
Making Menstrual Products More Accessible For All
Read More +
Michaela mckenzie
Expressing Herself Through Dance & Theater
Read More +