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In the nonprofit world, representation of all groups affected by, or served by, an organization is important. And until now, the Suffolk Education Foundation — an organization that exists to serve teachers and students of Suffolk Public Schools — had no student representation on the board.

The foundation set out to fix that, and they made an excellent choice for their first student representative.

Noelle Ingram is a rising junior at King’s Fork High School and is part of the International Baccalaureate program, a member of the National Honor Society, and participates on the field hockey and tennis teams. She works with Hope for Suffolk, serves youth and homeless families with Growing Ladies Obtaining Womanhood (GLOW) every month, plays two instruments and enjoys reading fiction.

With all of those accomplishments and community involvement already, Ingram will be able to bring to the board a wealth of knowledge, experiences and representation to be a voice for students.

“I hope to give the board members a better understanding of what students need and what is not working,” Ingram told News-Herald reporter Rachel Austin this week.

The Suffolk Education Foundation provides many benefits to students, including college scholarships. In 2021 alone, the foundation awarded 15 scholarships totaling more than $23,000 to students at King’s Fork, Lakeland and Nansemond River high schools. However, Ingram believes many students are not aware of these and the other resources the foundation provides, and she hopes to change that.

“I want to help the foundation become more known to students,” she said.

Congratulations to Ingram for this accomplishment. We know she will represent her peers well and blaze a trail for future students to follow.