Contributor

Sam Reiss

Founder, X-Change the World

Sam Reiss is the founder of X-change the World. He will be a Senior at Crossroads High School in Santa Monica, CA, where he is Student Body President, Managing Editor of the School Newspaper, and President of Teen Aids Ambassadors. Sam discovered his passion for service when a group of Tanzanian orphans visited his school in 2007. This encounter prompted him to co-found Kids for Tunahaki, an organization that raised funds to build a much needed home for these children. In 2010, Sam raised the funds to sponsor a soccer program for orphans in Rwanda, which later went on to win numerous local awards. Sam has traveled across the country speaking at Best Buddies events with his buddy Rex Lewis-Clack, a renowned musical savant who has been featured on 60 Minutes three times.

In 2011, Sam founded X-Change the World, a project that uses an online educational platform to connect students in America with students across the world. It aims to bring English speaking skills—and other educational opportunities—to underprivileged youth, and life-long, cross-cultural friendships to students both here and abroad. The Jefferson Awards for Public Service recently awarded X-Change The World 2nd place in the Education and Literacy category of National Youth Service Challenge. Sam participated in the Global Scholars Program at African Leadership Academy in the Summer of 2012 where he won the Overall Excellence Award. He is a Creative Activist with the Creative Visions Foundation.

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