Lorraine Hansberry scholarships announced (2025)
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is excited to announce, in association with the Women’s Leadership Project (WLP), the awardees of the 2025 Lorraine Hansberry Humanist Scholarship Awards.
FFRF gave $2,500 to help fund scholarships for nine college students this year. The honorees were chosen by the Women’s Leadership Project, which, with Young Male Scholars, conducts school and community-based peer education programming, outreach and professional development, offering invaluable life and job training skills.
The award memorializes Hansberry, the freethinking playwright who famously wrote in 1964: “Though it be a thrilling and marvelous thing to be merely young and gifted in such time, it is doubly so — doubly dynamic — to be young, gifted and Black.” Hansberry’s freethinking play, “A Raisin in the Sun” (1959), was the first drama by a Black woman produced on Broadway.
Awardees receive between $250-$1,000 in honor of their racial and gender justice community service, peer education and organizing engagement during their high school and college careers.
Participating students meet weekly with program coordinators and interns and are trained in sexual harassment and sexual violence prevention, LGBTQ-plus youth leadership outreach and homeless education.
For the past several years, these youths have demonstrated outstanding social justice leadership, peer education and community organizing. These multiyear college scholarships are designed to support Women’s Leadership Project and Young Male Scholars’ youth through graduation. The majority are first-in-the-family college students. Besides the Freedom From Religion Foundation, support was also provided by the Carrie and Ellie Harrington Fund.
This year’s Lorraine Hansberry Humanist scholarship award winners are:
Kaysea Duarte — U.S. Navy ($1,000)
Mariajose Leones — UC-Davis ($1,000)
Zella Montgomery — Santa Monica College ($250)
Lizette Nsilu — El Camino College ($250)
Jasmine Onyeagoro — Cal State-San Luis Obispo ($1,000)
Brianna Simone Parnell — Santa Monica College ($250)
Ashantee Polk — Long Beach City College ($250)
Kaysea Duarte
I’m an 18-year-old graduate of King Drew Medical Magnet High School. On Aug. 19, I will begin my service in the United States Navy, where I plan to earn my bachelor’s degree in biomedicine. My goal is to attend graduate school and become a physician assistant specializing in obstetrics and gynecology. Throughout high school, I was deeply involved in the Women’s Leadership Project, starting as a freshman presenting to other freshmen an experience that was extremely out of my comfort zone, but helped me grow into the mentor and advocate that I now am. WLP taught me the importance of addressing the common struggle of being misunderstood and allowed me to be part of building a bridge toward better understanding within my community. I presented to students, teachers, staff, and even my counselor, which helped me realize that the issues people face are not just about age, race, gender or sexual orientation, but are rooted in systemic inequality. Through my time in WLP, I’ve gained the confidence to speak up and stay true to myself, no matter the circumstance.
Mariajose Leones
I am 18 years old and graduated from King/Drew Magnet High School this year. I will be attending the University of California, Davis this fall. I intend to declare my major as psychology and plan to become a social worker. I especially want to help those in marginalized communities and those who are not privileged. I formerly served as the vice president of WLP for the 2025 school year. In my time with WLP, I was given many opportunities, including when I got to speak to Los Angeles City Council members about our group’s #Standing4BlackGirls demands. Another notable event was when I attended a #Standing4BlackGirls rally. When our group marched, I felt empowered. This was the first time I ever truly attended a rally, and this experience allowed me to understand the importance of taking action and demanding action from our local government. Being a member of the Women’s Leadership Project helped me grow as a person, and especially as an activist and advocate. Before, I would have been too shy to speak in front of a powerful group from my local government, but I found power and my voice with WLP.
Zella Montgomery
I have been involved with the Women’s Leadership Project since 2022. I started working with WLP as a youth intern in 2024 and have developed with my peers a suicide prevention education curriculum for teens. I attend Santa Monica College, where I am majoring in ethnic studies and sociology. I plan on transferring to Cal State Long Beach in 2026 to pursue a B.A. and an M.F.A. My post-graduate plans are to work in education as an art instructor at the community college level. Being at Santa Monica College has allowed me to see exactly where I excel and has given me the time and space to shape my goals moving forward in my academic journey.
Lizette Nsilu
I am a 20-year-old who is continuing my education at El Camino College. I joined the Women’s Leadership Project during my senior year at King/Drew Magnet High School in 2023. After finishing my prerequisites, I plan to transfer to California State University Dominguez Hills to receive a bachelor’s degree in finance.
The Women’s Leadership Project has played a transformative role in both my academic path and personal development. Through the program, I’ve gained a deeper understanding of the social justice issues impacting Black women and girls in Los Angeles — issues that are too often overlooked in mainstream media. This awareness has empowered me to become an advocate, raising consciousness among those directly affected and decision-makers with the power to drive change. With WLP, I’ve participated in marches, spoken publicly outside council offices, shared the stories of victims of sexual violence, and presented demands aimed at reducing these injustices.
Jasmine Onyeagoro
I am 17 years old and just graduated from King/Drew Medical Magnet High School. I’ll be continuing my education at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, where I’ll be majoring in biomedical engineering. From there, I plan to earn my master’s degree, followed by a Ph.D. My goal is to become a biomedical engineer so I cannot only represent Black excellence, but proudly say that I am a Black woman engineer.
I’ve been a member of the Women’s Leadership Project for all four years of high school, and during my senior year, I had the honor of serving as president. Being part of WLP has helped me understand the challenges that women of color and members of the LGBTQ-plus community face every day. I participated in a conversation with the City Council about the unfair treatment, violence and lack of attention surrounding missing and murdered Black girls. WLP has shown me that speaking up is one of the most powerful tools we have. There are real issues that affect me and my community, and becoming informed, vocal and confident in moments like these is how we create real change.
Brianna Simone Parnell
I graduated from Gardena High in 2019, but joined the WLP during my junior year. I turned 24 this year and am a student at Santa Monica College, where my major is in interior architecture. Although academically I am pursuing a career in architecture, currently I serve as a youth educator, coach, freelance artist and creative facilitator. My involvement in the Women’s Leadership Project and #Standing4BlackGirls Coalition has had a very positive impact on my life and those around me in my community. Every year, I look forward to attending or facilitating the LGBTQ-plus retreats because I leave with someone new to look up to, very inspired and informed. My experiences with WLP at events like UCLA’s Resource Fair resonate with me because those are the times when I get to connect with other organizations and students. Seeing people interact with merchandise that I’ve created for the program is super satisfying, too.
Ashantee Polk
I am 22 years old and a 2020 graduate of King/Drew Magnet High School. I attend Long Beach City College and plan on transferring to Cal State University Long Beach in the fall. My major is psychology, and my career goal is to become a licensed therapist. I currently work with children with developmental disabilities, and when I transfer to a four-year institution, I plan to continue that work.
I’ve been involved in WLP since my junior year at King/Drew. In my senior year of WLP, I became president of the King/Drew chapter, and about three years later, I became the #Standing 4 Black Girls Task Force coordinator. I’ve attended, participated, and even spoken at our #S4BG Murdered and Missing Rallies for the past three years. Most recently, I have stepped into my “acting bag” by helping CEO/Founder Sikivu Hutchinson and WLP Project Director Jesscia Robinson on the set of the Black Women’s showcase, “Outliers,” where I served as a production assistant.
