RIVERSIDE, Calif.— The NAACP-Riverside Branch is proud to announce this year’s scholars who will be representing their Academic Cultural Technological Scientific Olympics (ACT-SO) division competing at the NAACP National Convention in July. Each year at the NAACP National Convention, scholars compete in different categories including: Performing Arts, Humanities, Visual Arts, Science and Entrepreneurship. ACT-SO was founded in 1978 by the late Vernon Jarrett. It is designed to recruit, stimulate, improve and encourage high academics and cultural achievement among African American high school students.

Earlier this year, NAACP-Riverside branch recruited students who competed in local competitions to qualify them to go to the national competition. These finalists include: Israel Tucker, classical piano; Nia Campbell, playwright and poetry; Joshua Jones, oratory; Amir Kelly, classical vocal, contemporary vocal and dramatics; and William Feldon dance. All five are gold medal winners who will compete against other gold medal winners from each state at the National “Olympics Of The Mind” which will be held at the Mandalay Bay Hotel in Las Vegas, Calif. on July 17, 2014.

In order to send these scholars to the national competition, donations and sponsors are needed. If you are interested in supporting these youth with a donation, please contact: Maudie Wilson, ACT-SO Chairperson at 951-640-1650 for additional information.