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Kaiya Cherniavsky – Chapter 416cc Willow Glen High School
Adviser Sarah Bielefeld
Principal Ryan Jahrman
San Jose Unified Unified School District
Volunteering at the Special Olympics Spring Games, Kaiya coached kids and adults with special needs. The motto of her swim team the San Jose Lightning was optimism.
Using primarily demonstration to coach allowed Kaiya to connect with mostly nonverbal team members. She gained a stunning result when she asked “What should we do today?” and received the first verbal reply from one of her team members who was learning the Dolphin stroke. She experienced similar progress from other swimmers on her team and feedback from parents made her realize that progress in swimming was affecting other parts of their lives giving them the confidence to speak and to to persist in their attempts to learn and improve.
Kaiya wrote that “I started out believing I would be teaching swimming technique. Instead, I learned how to communicate without words, to recognize the invisible gains, and to trust people enough to let them struggle.”
CSF Congratulates Kaiya Cherniavsky, the 2025-2026 CSF Michelson Award Recipient on her excellent essay. California Scholarship Federation is pleased to recognize Kaiya for her dedication to community service and compelling essay writing.
The Glenn Michelson Memorial Award was established in 2012 in memory of the late Glenn Michelson, past 20-year CSF adviser of Sequoia High School in Redwood City and past Board of Directors member who served as State President, CSF Registrar, Regional Vice-President, Historian, and Legislative Chair. He was a strong advocate of our CSF motto promoting community service.
Upon his passing, Glenn bequeathed funds to CSF, and the Board of Directors voted to have an annual essay contest in Glenn’s honor open to high school CSF juniors and seniors who have a passion for service.