Four rising high school seniors from Riverside County have been working as paid interns with local nonprofits this summer, in the Bank of America Student Leaders program.

The 2024 Inland Empire Student Leaders are Ishaan Gupta of Corona, a student at Centennial High School, working with Hope Through Housing; Hala Koreatam of Moreno Valley, a student at Martin Luther King High School, working with Habitat for Humanity Riverside; Katie Minniear of Temecula, a student at St. Jeanne de Lestonnac Catholic High School, working with Michelle’s Place; and Joseph Or of Riverside, a student at Martin Luther King High School, working with Inland Empire Community Foundation.

In addition to working in the eight-week internship program, the students are receiving financial education coaching from Bank of America’s Better Money Habits curriculum, according to a news release.

As part of the summer program, the students also attend a leadership summit in Washington, D.C., and meet with members of Congress, according to the news release.

The Bank of America Student Leaders program recognizes 300 or more high school juniors and seniors from across the United States every year. In the Inland Empire, 93 students have participated in the program since it began in 2005, according to the news release.

About the 2024 Inland Empire Bank of America Student Leaders:

• Ishaan Gupta founded a finance and investing club at his high school and is a member of the school’s Future Business Leaders of America chapter. He has participated in the National History Day competition and is on the school’s varsity tennis team.

• Hala Koreatam is co-founder of a Middle Eastern and North African club at her school and is co-captain of the track and field team, according to the news release. She volunteers at the Mary S. Roberts Pet Adoption Center and with Kaiser Permanente and started a project to provide low-income students with free hygiene products.

• Katie Minniear, daughter of a member of the Pechanga Tribal Council, is a leader with her school’s Associated Student Body and in her Future Farmers of America chapter. She also started a Model United Nations club at her school, according to the news release.

• Joseph Or has volunteered with UCR Youth Health and Development Lab, researching the differences in understanding climate change across racial and ethnic groups, and has interned with the Asian American Task Force to help look at ways to destigmatize mental illness within the AAPI community, according to the news release. He also developed eighth-grade curriculum on climate change and environmental justice for the Environmental Education Collaborative.