Brooklyn youth leader making a huge difference
By Nelson A. King
At a time when many of
today’s youth yearn for proper
guidance and strong role models,
a Crown Heights, Brooklynborn
youth leader, activist and
public speaker, of Vincentian
parentage, is already making
a huge difference in the community
and setting the bar very
high for her peers to reach.
Kyra-Lee Harry — who,
along with the Brooklyn-based
St. Vincent and the Grenadines
Ex-Teachers Association of New
York, received the Humanitarian
Award two Saturdays ago
from the St. Vincent and the
Grenadines Diaspora Committee
of New York — is the
daughter of Fitzpatrick Robert
Harry and Cornetta Calita
Harry.
The younger Harry said she
has made it her “life’s mission
to give back to her community,”
according to her biography.
She said her dedication and
passion for making a positive
impact in the lives of others
have shown through her eight
years of experience in leadership,
public speaking, networking
and problem-solving,
among others, “which have led
to the creation of events for
over 800 youth.”
At 15, Harry was the youngest
person to ever be appointed
to a Community Board in the
United States and has earned
the highest honors from the
largest global youth development
organization, 4-H, for her
civic engagement.
For 13 years, she attended
St. Mark’s Day School and
graduated in 2013 as Head Girl
and Valedictorian.
She is a former student at
Brooklyn’s Medgar Evers College
Preparatory High School,
where she earned both an
advanced regents diploma and
her Associate’s Degree in Biology
from Medgar Evers College
at 18.
Harry is currently a rising
junior at New York University’s
(NYU) Tandon School of Engineering,
Caribbean Life, N 24 ovember 15-21, 2019
pursuing studies in
Business and Technology Management.
In her first year at NYU, she
said she founded an annual
Black History month event,
which gave the Black Community
at NYU “a platform to use
their voice, share their passions
and celebrate being Black.”
She also serves as a Chapter
and Regional executive board
member of the National Society
of Black Engineers (NSBE).
Harry said her role as Pre-
Collegiate Initiative Chairperson
in NSBE gives her “the
opportunity to encourage and
expose more young black youth
to S.T.E.M fields.”
According to Live Science,
S.T.E.M is a curriculum based
on the idea of educating students
in four specific disciplines
— science, technology,
engineering and mathematics
— in an interdisciplinary and
applied approach.
“Rather than teach the four
disciplines as separate and discrete
subjects, S.T.E.M integrates
them into a cohesive
learning paradigm based on
real-world applications,” Live
Science said.
In 2018, out of over 50,000
students, Harry was named
one of NYU’s Top 10 Most Influential
Students for her significant
contributions to the NYU
Community.
This summer, she said she
interned at Johnson and Johnson
World Head Quarters as
a Corporate Business Technology
Intern in the area of Global
Strategy and Operations.
Harry said she was the first
intern to schedule a meeting
with the chief executive officer,
and gave over 400 interns and
co-ops “a chance to connect
with the executive team.”
In accepting the SVG Diaspora
Committee’s award, at the
group’s 3rd Heritage Awards
and Gala Ceremony, at the
Friends of Crown Heights Educational
Center in Brooklyn,
Harry expressed gratitude, stating
that she was “truly humbled,
grateful and so thankful.”
“Thank you to God, who is
the head of my life, because,
without Him, I would not be
here today,” she said. “Thank
you to my parents for being
great examples and for their
love and support.
Kyra-Lee Harry receives award (center) immediately fl anked
by her parents Fitzpatrick Robert Harry and Cornetta Calita
Harry, and Sherill-Ann Mason-Haywood (far left) and
Diaspora Committee member. Photo by Nelson A. King