Held in the new event pavilion at Roger Williams Park Zoo, the evening recognized the accomplishments of Rhode Island’s High School Heroes and the people who make high school blood drives possible throughout the year. RIBC is grateful to Roger Williams Park Zoo for being such a welcoming host and partner, and to Blood Centers of America (BCA) for sponsoring the event and supporting the students and school communities at the heart of the program.
The High School Hero Program has been a cornerstone of RIBC’s mission since it launched during the 2004-2005 academic year. Today, 65 Rhode Island high schools participate in the program, with 79 schools participating in total across Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. During the 2025-2026 school year, high schools hosted 167 blood drives and collected nearly 5,000 donations, potentially helping more than 14,000 patients. Those drives now supply nearly 6% of RIBC’s total blood supply, underscoring the important role students play in supporting patients and families across the region.
Throughout the evening, students were recognized for recruiting donors, supporting their school blood drives, and reaching milestones of their own. This year, 30 students became Gallon Grads by donating a total of one gallon of blood, or eight donations, before graduating high school. Awards also recognized the schools, educators, nurses, administrators, and coordinators whose commitment helps make these drives successful year after year, from outstanding blood drive performance and improvement to community engagement and donor recruitment.
One of the evening’s most powerful moments came from Erin Rudolph, a senior at Moses Brown School and longtime RIBC blood drive student coordinator. Erin shared the story of her father, Jim, a Providence VA Hospital physician who relied on blood transfusions while battling two cancers before his passing earlier this year.
Erin saw firsthand what those transfusions gave her father: energy, time, and the ability to keep doing the things he loved. At a hemoglobin level of 10, he ran a full marathon. At 9, he ran a half marathon. Her story offered a vivid reminder that a blood donation is more than a unit collected at a school blood drive. It can mean another laugh with family, another day at work, or another mile on a marathon course.
After her father’s passing, Erin and her sister took part in a blood drive organized in his honor, Pints for Jim. It collected 54 pints, making it the most successful blood drive at the Providence VA Hospital in three years. For Erin, the experience reinforced a lesson she had already begun to understand through her work with RIBC: you do not have to know the person receiving your blood to change their life.
RIBC closed the evening by introducing its new high school campaign, Help A Fellow Human, which encourages schools to find creative ways to increase blood drive participation. High schools that host three or more blood drives during the school year will receive limited-edition “Help A Fellow Human” T-shirts as a special thank-you.
The evening was ultimately a celebration of what happens when students, educators, and communities come together around a common purpose. Every blood drive is an opportunity for a student to make a difference, and every donation has the potential to give a patient more time.
Congratulations to all of this year’s High School Heroes, and thank you to every student, school, educator, coordinator, administrator, and community partner who continues to make blood donation part of the high school experience.
2026 High School Hero Award Winners
Woonsocket High School — High School Hero Challenge, 3rd Place (301+ senior class)
Beacon Charter High School for the Arts — High School Hero Challenge, 2nd Place (0-100 senior class)
Blackstone Academy Charter School — High School Hero Challenge, 3rd Place (0-100 senior class)
Classical High School — Outstanding Support by a School Nurse, Sarah Larson, RN
Coventry High School — High School Hero Challenge, 2nd Place (201-300 senior class); Be A King Size Hero Award
East Providence High School — High School Hero Challenge, 2nd Place (301+ senior class); Vision Award, Bill Black, Shane Messier and Robert Hanlon
Johnston Senior High School — High School Hero Challenge, 1st Place (101-200 senior class)
Middletown High School — High School Hero Challenge, 3rd Place (101-200 senior class); Outstanding Committee Award, Anita DeLima and Middletown High School Student Recruiters
Mount Pleasant High School — High School Hero Challenge, 1st Place (201-300 senior class); Be A King Size Hero Award (most social media engagement)
Mount Saint Charles Academy — Comeback Award
North Kingstown High School — High School Hero Challenge, 1st Place (301+ senior class); Scott Wright Memorial Award (most blood donations); Gianna Cirella Award (most first-time donors)
North Providence High School — Outstanding Community Engagement Award
North Smithfield High School — High School Hero Challenge, 2nd Place (101-200 senior class)
Paul Cuffee Upper School — High School Hero Challenge, 1st Place (0-100 senior class)
Portsmouth High School — High School Hero Challenge, 3rd Place (201-300 senior class)
Providence Career & Technical High School — Outstanding Improvement in Blood Drive Performance, Tori Silva
The Prout School — Outstanding Improvement in Blood Drive Performance
St. Andrew’s School — Comeback Award
Toll Gate High School — Paul Hynes “Gift of Life” Coordinator of the Year Award, Jim Kennedy
West Warwick High School — Outstanding Administrator Award, Dr. Kristen Hinson
