Kailen Tharpe, a senior at Redan High School, represented the students of the DeKalb County School District at the Dec. 5 meeting of the DeKalb County Board of Education.
Kailen holds a 3.5 GPA and plans to major in computer information systems in college. She is the Student Government Association president and the vice president of the local Future Business Leaders of America. She is also part of Georgia State’s TRIO Upward Bound, Beta Club, and an assistant sous-chef de cuisine for Redan High’s culinary program. Kailen is a student athlete: she plays basketball and participates in track and cross-country.
Tharpe has not made a final decision on college, and is considering Georgia Southern University and Georgia State University. After college, she plans to operate her own company that will market and manage applications, software and websites. In addition, she is an entrepreneur with her own clothing line; she plans to donate some of her profits to a charity.