Kaleigh, a student at Villanova, is a semi-finalist for the 2023 Heumann-Armstrong Award.
More About Kaleigh:
Kaleigh Brendle has been visually impaired all her life, but that has not stopped her from pursuing her dreams. In 2021, she graduated from the Scholar Center for the Humanities Program housed at Howell High School, having taken 8 AP courses and receiving a principal’s achievement medal for earning a perfect score on two of her exams. She served as Captain of her school’s mock Trial team for three years, and was Head Council every time the team headed to the courtroom to compete. She is also the Founder and Director of the Sing for Serenity Choir, an international online choir for the blind, which currently has over 100 members from approximately 15 countries. She has qualified for the finals of the International Braille Challenge 11 times, because she believes that with Braille on her side, an empowered future is at her fingertips. Now she’s a junior at Villanova University, pursuing two majors and four minors (one of her majors is one she designed herself called argumentation and advocacy). . She is currently on a pre-law track, aspiring to be a disability rights attorney. She made the Dean’s List and the President’s List every semester thus far. When she is not focusing on her academics, she can be found singing with a Villanova a cappella group that she auditioned for, called Minor Problem. She also competes on Villanova’s nationally ranked Ethics Debate Team, and serves as an award-winning witness on the Mock Trial team. She was elected Outreach Coordinator of the disability inclusion and advocacy group on campus, called Level. She has sang at the White House three times, and her album “Karma” is available on all music-streaming platforms.