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McLean High School junior Chloe Jeong’s years of community service earned countywide recognition March 1, when she was named one of 28 recipients of the 2026 Student Peace Awards of Fairfax County.
Jeong has devoted much of high school to the Interact Club and McLean’s Rotary chapter. Her work has ranged from organizing litter collections and painting faces at the local Chocolate Festival to volunteering at senior homes.
The award also highlighted a passion Jeong developed long before high school. Gardening with her parents and creating environmentally focused artwork helped convince her that conservation advocacy was her calling.
Jeong said she was honored by the recognition and hopes it will bring additional support to the Interact Club. Seeing the work of the other award recipients at the ceremony also inspired her, she said.
Her environmental efforts reach across the Chesapeake Bay watershed through the Chesapeake Student Leadership Program, operated by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. Jeong works alongside students from Maryland, Pennsylvania, Washington, D.C., and Virginia to address climate change and advocate for funding to protect the bay and its watershed.
She also hopes her advocacy can eventually have an international impact. Jeong has identified elephant conservation in Laos as one possible focus because elephants are a keystone species there.
Art remains central to her approach. Jeong won the 2025 Congressional Art Competition for Virginia’s 8th District, and she uses her work to depict current environmental problems and encourage action.
“I’ve been really interested in depicting current environmental issues through artworks,” Jeong said. She explained that this interest led her into environmental volunteering and advocacy.
Jeong encourages other students to begin with manageable service and community goals, then look around their communities for causes that connect with their interests.
Interact Club member Avery Hughes described Jeong as a leader who makes time for others, responds when members need help and continually searches for new ways to serve. Hughes said the award could help the club broaden its outreach and increase its support for McLean High School and the surrounding community.
Jeong plans to continue working toward a cleaner, healthier community, supporting wildlife and encouraging others to participate. She said awareness of humanity’s environmental impact is important—and that those who have the ability to serve should find ways to give back to their communities.