PHILADELPHIA — Awilda Balbuena graduated from high school unable to read proficiently. She was rejected from every law school she applied to.
Now, she’s one of Philadelphia’s best school leaders, the recipient of a 2025 Lindback Award for Distinguished Principal Leadership.
Balbeuna’s rise is remarkable, but emblematic of what the Gloria Casarez Elementary principal tells the students and staff of the Kensington school: There is promise and power inside all of us, and with hard work, we can accomplish great things, even among difficult circumstances…