Bowie High student Jaida Nava has always had a knack for helping her community.
The 17-year-old first started when she would help her mother clean the area around the Amber Hagerman memorial while she was in elementary school. Now, she’s helping lead a movement to renew her high school’s courtyards and get others involved in volunteer work to help out their community.
Jaida said she saw gaps around her and wanted to help fill them.
“There’s a mix of personal experiences where I wished I had resources, so I just wanted to multiply that for others,” she said.
Jaida’s work in the community and at her school earned her a nomination in 52 Faces of Community, Fort Worth Report’s weekly series highlighting unsung heroes in Tarrant County.
When she was a sophomore, Jaida began volunteering at Mission Arlington’s free clinic, the Bob Mann Medical Clinic, as a translator. Weeks after she began, she left to help take care of her ailing grandfather.
On trips to doctors’ appointments with her grandparents, she began translating for them and saw a bigger need.
“I wanted to fix the gap of language barriers, cultural barriers, different perspectives on health care and helping each other,” Jaida said.
The love for health and the medical field stuck with her. Currently, she’s taking an electrocardiogram course and plans to apply for an EKG technician position with the hope of becoming a doctor in the future.
As a P-Tech student at Bowie High, where she takes college courses through Tarrant County College and specialized health science courses, she found her peers needed help finding ways to get engaged.
In 2024, she created a master document filled with volunteering opportunities. The resources are meant not only to fulfill students’ required volunteering hours but also to make a positive impact on the community.
“It would be something besides just standing there and being emotional support,” Jaida said. “It was feeding people and donating clothes.”
Then, one of her fellow students approached her about joining a student-led club focused on mental health.
“She’s making sure that this is something that’s not just about her, it’s not about Bowie, but it’s about making the world a better place.”
Lee Jones, Bowie High School principal and nominator
Recently, Jaida and the group were awarded a Texas Health Wellness Innovation Grant to help fund their efforts to renovate the school’s courtyards.
She said the group was looking to find a safe space for students to gather outside of the walls of the school.
Jaida added that students became hesitant to go outside during their lunch period due to a shooting that took place on the campus in 2024.
“Bowie is getting better, (we still want) that extra push where students can be excited to learn,” she said.
Jaida said a group of students and the club’s adviser go to the courtyards twice a week to clean the area.
Her hope is that the courtyards be multiuse, serving as a gathering place, a place for students to de-stress and even an outdoor classroom when needed.
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Bowie High Principal Lee Jones said that Jaida’s work has made him evaluate how he can foster his students’ passions and work.
“She’s one of those individuals who is like that rippling effect,” Jones said. “She’s making sure that this is something that’s not just about her, it’s not about Bowie, but it’s about making the world a better place.”
Jaida and the club have also put an emphasis on getting sophomores and juniors involved to keep the work going long term, Jones said.
“They’re not just thinking about today,” Jones said. “They’re thinking about today, and they’re thinking about tomorrow.”
Chris Moss is a reporter for the Arlington Report. Contact him at chris.moss@arlingtonreport.org.
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