Indigo Green, June 2022 graduate from Charles J. Colgan Sr. High School, won the Bronze Medal in the Poetry Written category at the National NAACP Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological, and Scientific Olympics (ACT-SO) competition held recently in Atlantic City, New Jersey. More than 400 high school students from 29 states attended this year's annual competition. As part of the award, Indigo received a $1,000 scholarship and several other prizes, including an iPad, Air Pods, and an Oculus virtual reality game set.
Indigo attended Colgan High School's Center for Fine and Performing Arts Program with a concentration in creative writing. She also plays the guitar and several percussion instruments and is working to publish her first poetry collection.
Indigo and three other local Prince William County students had the opportunity to compete at the national level after being one of five gold medal winners at the local PWC ACT-SO competition, held on the Woodbridge campus of Northern Virginia Community College in April. Only gold medal winners earn the right to compete at the national level.
The NAACP's Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics is a yearlong achievement program designed to recruit, stimulate, and encourage high academic and cultural achievement among high school students in grades 9-12. Although the program targets African American students, all students are welcome to participate. ACT-SO includes 34 competitions in STEM, humanities, business, and performing, visual and culinary arts. Almost 300,000 young people have participated in the program since its inception.