A junior at Cape Henry Collegiate, Henry Scolnick was recently named one of this year’s recipients for the Diller Teen Tikkun Olam Award. Henry is the youngest recipient in this year’s cohort.
Awarded annually by The Helen Diller Family Foundation, up to 15 Jewish teens receive $36,000 each for their leadership efforts to change the world. The awards website notes that “Young people have the power and passion to create ripples of good and repair the world.”
In middle school, Henry founded Ballers Basketball, a league for neurodivergent students in Hampton Roads. The league holds weekly winter practices that draw dozens of participants and neurotypical volunteers.
Henry’s younger brother, Oliver, has autism. “For me, tikkun olam means inclusion,” Henry says in his video profile for the Diller Teen Tikkun Olam Award. He and Oliver did everything growing up together, Henry explains, and the older Scolnick wanted his brother to have every opportunity. This goal sparked the creation of Ballers Basketball.
Henry is also a founding member of Cape Henry’s Upper School Service Council and the president of the Volunteerism Club. In both roles, he engages his peers in the school’s community outreach and service learning with the goal of improving the lives of others.
The Diller Teen Tikkun Olam Award ceremony was held in August at the Four Seasons Hotel in San Francisco. Henry spent a few days before the event at a Shabbaton with the other recipients. The teens also spent time with past awardees.
Lauren and Aaron Scolnick, Henry and Oliver’s parents, attribute much of Oliver’s success in life to his older brother. “Oliver was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder when he was three years old. From that moment on, we worked tirelessly to provide him with every possible support and service in the hopes that he would lead a happy and fulfilling life—full of joy, friendship, and laughter. The number of services he has received is countless at this point, but we can say with absolute certainty that having Henry as his big brother has been the most meaningful and significant intervention of all.”
Additionally, through the Horn School of Entrepreneurship at University of Delaware, Henry was named one of the Top 100 Emerging Innovators this year. He and two other Cape Henry Collegiate students stood out among a group of highly competitive applicants from 34 nations and 25 states. This program celebrates young changemakers committed to turning ideas into action and provides them with recognition and visibility.
In an email announcement of the award, Will Tragert, head of Cape Henry’s Upper School, commended the teen, saying, “This is a tremendous achievement. Henry has worked for years in support of special needs children. He has grown remarkably as a leader and community advocate, and I am thrilled to see his efforts recognized far beyond Cape Henry.”
“Giving kids like Oliver the opportunity to feel included, to feel accepted, means the world to me,” Henry shares. The league includes players with Downs Syndrome, and those who are nonverbal or who need a wheelchair. “Everyone can come together with a sense of belonging.
“I’m learning that leadership isn’t just about being in charge, but about bringing people together, making connections, and lifting others up.”
