They stand out in the crowd.
The Distinguished Young Women (DYW) of Avon are high school seniors who are smart, talented, volunteer in their community and so much more.
“These are the girls that check all of the boxes,” said new Executive Director Daphne Larson. “They are juggling many things in their high school career and they want more.”
Distinguished Young Women is a national program launched in 1958, and boasts an alumni list that includes journalist Diane Sawyer, actress Debra Messing and aerospace engineer Marlo Graves. They’ve awarded more than $112 million in cash scholarships and more than 800,000 high school women have participated across the country.
The DYW of Avon was created in 1980 and more than 700 women have participated in the local program.
It was formed to recognize the outstanding accomplishments of young women, and to use their leadership skills and talents to earn scholarships for secondary education.
Previously known as America’s Junior Miss, their name changed to DYW in 2010 in an effort to separate themselves from stereotypical beauty pageants. These ladies are athletes, musicians, involved in the arts and clubs, and working hard toward academic achievement. Although they are beautiful inside and out, the program has nothing to do with outward appearance.
It begins with a call-out meeting in late February, and DYW of Avon volunteers reach out to guidance counselors, teachers, sponsors and others in the community to spread the word. If a young lady is interested, she is invited.
“I don’t ever say they have to have this, this and this,” Larson said. “You never know what you’ll trigger in a young woman. It’s so much more than a beauty pageant. The program gives the women a platform to showcase their talents.”
A dozen ladies participate each year in the final showcase event.
There is an interview with judges, a public speaking portion on stage, a 90-second talent portion, a physical fitness routine, and choreographed opening and closing numbers.
“The academic portion is the largest in the point system,” Larson said. “They’ll interview with the judges the morning of, and then the self-expression portion on stage really looks at how they present themselves. They are able to showcase their talent, and that’s anything from dancing to singing to solving a Rubik’s Cube.”
The judging is 25% scholastics or academics, 25% interview, 15% self-expression, 20% talent and 15% fitness.
Some aspects of the program might sound like the stereotypical competition. However, the details of the program go a lot deeper than that. The women spend the better part of the year learning, improving and giving back to the Avon community.
“Throughout the summer we do life-skill workshops and we’re looking to add more,” Larson said. “I want the girls to have tools in their tool belt, so they working on public speaking skills and being your best self.”
They also host Camp Be Your Best Self each year, inviting kindergarten through eighth-grade girls to participate in a day-long event with the focus on being healthy, involved, studious, ambitious and responsible.
Participants engage in crafts and physical activities, and they learn a choreographed dance to perform at the showcase event. The DYW of Avon ladies want to encourage young girls to resist negative peer pressure, set goals and strive to reach them, all while connecting to mentors and other young women who want the best for them.
“The camp is a way for the current young ladies to encourage and support young people,” Larson said. “In Avon we’re unique because we’ve also created a Little Sister program to invite the junior-high ladies to participate.”
It’s a tradition for many. It’s not uncommon for women who participated at some point in their lives to have come back to volunteer and support the organization. Three of the original 1980 program participants are current committee members today. They know how powerful the program can be for the young women.
DYW of Avon often hosts carwashes to fundraise for the scholarship portion of the program, and volunteers at various community events throughout the year such as the Hendricks County Rib-Fest.
“Regardless of what they do outside, we want them to remember their community and how being a participant in DYW of Avon helped them impact the world around them,” Larson said. “This ends up going much further than Avon alone.”
The week prior to the final showcase event brings all the young women together to rehearse.
“It’s really magical,” Larson said. “The girls are athletes, involved in the arts, have strong academic standards, and you might think they don’t have anything in common, but by the end of the week they are each other’s cheerleaders.”
In August of 2024 they awarded their 45th Avon participant, Calleigh Neal.
The program costs nothing to enter, but women have a chance to win 13 scholarships, totaling $15,000. It’s truly an untapped opportunity for many young women according to Larson. More than 50 colleges across the country award scholarships simply for participating in the program.
“We award the second-highest amount in scholarship dollars in the state of Indiana,” Larson said. “Our top-three winners receive $4,500, $2,500 and $1,500, and every participant gets a textbook scholarship provided by the Sinclair Foundation.”
Whether they are looking for unique and challenging ways to earn scholarships, hope to improve their public speaking skills, or simply enjoy the social aspect of meeting other successful young women in their community, at DYW of Avon, every participant walks away a winner.
“Year after year girls say, ‘It was the best part of my high school experience,’ and they leave feeling empowered to enter the adult world with self-confidence,” Larson said. “Some of these girls have never stepped on a stage and now they’re introducing each other and answering live questions in front of an audience. We’re thrilled to help them obtain the tools to do that.”
Interested high school students can register at distinguishedyw.org.
