Young.

Outgoing.

Uplifting.

The YOU Awards International (The YA’s) is a non-profit organization that was specifically designed to provide support and recognition to young people who stand out in their communities, but have not truly been celebrated. Every day, we as a society are flooded with negative images and stories, and are rarely shown the positive; the goal of our organization is to bring those positive images and stories to the forefront by seeking out extraordinary youth. This is done through research, as well recommendations by individuals, schools and other organizations. We honor our prodigies with a trophy and one-time monetary gift—a merit award—during our annual awards show, as they are recognized for their talents in academics, sports, business, fine arts, entertainment, technology and community service.

Michelle Ellis started this organization after several amazing years volunteering with the world-renowned Trumpet Awards. She has always appreciated the idea of recognizing people who stood out in their respective fields of work. But her thought was to take this concept to the next level by recognizing youth who may be considered “ordinary” as there’s no fame associated with them, but are extraordinary because of their everyday accomplishments. The YOU Awards International recognizes seven talented youth from every walk of life, with honorees currently selected from the states of Georgia, Louisiana and Texas, as we intended to expand our reach in the very near future. The youth are our future, and we want to share their stories and reflect on the journeys that got them to where they are today.

Everyone has a light to shine—join us today, and help young people shine even brighter.