WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) welcomed Allison Tu, a senior at duPont Manual High School in Louisville, to his U.S. Capitol office today to congratulate her for receiving the 2019 Prudential Spirit of Community Award.

“Now more than ever, our country needs dedicated and hardworking young people who have the drive to help others in their communities, and I was proud to meet Allison, one of these outstanding leaders,” said Senator McConnell, a Manual alumnus. “Because of her compassion for her fellow classmates and those in need, Allison is helping Kentucky take important steps to promote mental health among our students.”

Allison launched the Student Alliance for Mental Health Innovation and Action (StAMINA) as a youth-driven initiative to raise awareness of young people struggling with mental health issues. StAMINA has raised more than $100,000 in grants and has sponsored youth summits to discuss these critical issues affecting young people in both urban and rural communities in Kentucky.

The Prudential Spirit of Community Award honors two students from each state in recognition of their outstanding volunteer community service projects. In addition to being named a state honoree, Allison’s project was selected from that distinguished group as one of 10 national honorees.

Annemarie Fuerst, of Covington, was selected as Kentucky’s other state honoree.