CPH Memorial Award

Established in 2024, the Carson Prey-Harbaugh Memorial Award for Social Change is awarded to an eighth grader who made an impact during their time at SHMS by being extraordinarily inclusive, welcoming, and just. 

Carson Prey-Harbaugh was a student at Strath Haven Middle School from 2018 to 2021. In sixth grade, she and her brother Sylvan Prey-Harbaugh, then in eighth grade, founded the SHMS Rainbow Alliance with faculty member Samantha Shipeck. During her time at the middle school, Carson consistently led the Rainbow Alliance with a passion for making her school a more welcoming space for LGBTQIA+ peers and an open-hearted desire to bring people together. The Rainbow Alliance, which thrives today and is crucial to many students' positive school experience, would not exist without Carson's foundation. 

While a junior at Strath Haven High School, Carson died unexpectedly due to complications from the flu and pneumonia. Following her death, classmates, teachers, and community members shared countless stories of how Carson reached them and made an incontrovertibly positive influence on their lives. This award is intended to honor Carson's impact during her time at the middle school and carry her legacy forward by doing what she did each day: recognizing the good in others and leaving the school community better than it was before.