In a crowd of color guard performers, junior Andi Dulaney is the easiest to spot. If not for his flaming red hair, his flaming determination for his community certainly sets him apart. By working with organizations like PRISM, Dulaney is constantly speaking out and making life better for the youth.
Dulaney, a transgender man, is clear about why he stepped forward. He remembers the moment he chose to get involved, mainly hoping to help people who were in similar situations as himself. He recalled, “I would get bullied for who I was, like most of [middle] school for being trans.”
Last summer, Dulaney took action into high gear working with PRISM: a youth-led nonprofit focused on LGBTQ education, health, and leadership that would become his home base. He first plugged into PRISM’s Pride Student Ambassador Program, P-SAP, the arm that supports Gay-Straight Alliances (GSA) across Broward, Miami-Dade, and Palm Beach. With mentors and toolkits, P-SAP helped him formalize the GSA club’s efforts on campus, connect with guest speakers, and share resources that students could actually use.
As he puts it, P-SAP “really… helped me build GSA,” and without it he “probably wouldn’t be able to make [GSA] a thing at [our] school.”
As he grew, PRISM kept opening new doors. Dulaney joined a leadership cohort called PLC, a space designed for student officers who run GSAs. The workshops focus on practical skills, from planning meetings to leading safe discussions; allowing student leaders to feel less lost and more prepared. That same emphasis on student voice led him onto PRISM’s Youth Advisory Committee, YAC, where he helps steer programming toward teenagers rather than adults, keeping priorities grounded in what high-school students actually face.
PRISM did more than hand him a binder, it gave him a stable platform for his voice. Over time, Dulaney had gotten used to presenting in rooms full of strangers and he currently channels that same confidence back into school. He worked with sponsors who made sure GSA had both a mission and a calendar.
“PRISM… helped me be more social,” he says, and it “helped me with resources,” including the guests who now anchor club meetings.
Dulaney’s most defining day happened beyond campus. The junior gave a speech at a rally, advocating for access to gender-affirming care for minors. In the bulk of his remarks, he discussed bullying he endured, the care he could not access, and the perseverance he has shown nonetheless.
After he stepped down, a mother and her transgender daughter found him, telling him they had lived through something similar. Hearing that his story “inspired” them convinced him that his work matters, and that his voice, once shaky and unsure, could move people.
Despite successes, Dulaney is quite transparent about friction against his cause. Posters for GSA have been torn down, sometimes more than once, turning the atmosphere sour and hostile. No matter what obstacle, he keeps going, both for the kid he used to be, and for the classmates watching him stand his ground.
When it ever gets him down, he has stated “planning helps, discipline helps, and naps help too”. His whiteboard lists the week, P-SAP items sit next to homework, and Dulaney schedules rest so he can show up as his best self.
Beyond PRISM, Dulaney serves with the Broward Youth Coalition (youth advocates for substance-use prevention and mental-health promotion) taking the same organizing skills to a wider public-health lane. He has also lent time to Blooming, a friend’s project focused on helping LGBTQ youth access gender-affirming care when cost stands in the way; upholding a deputy-director role.
Above all, the performing arts are always an aspect in Dulaney’s life. Color guard and winter guard taught him to risk embarrassment, to try again, and shine. Last year, he had both Color guard and winter guard as a class, which allowed him to enjoy the spotlight a little more.
The mentorships he receives are what convinces him to continue. PRISM’s founder, Max Fenning, is the person who pushed Dulaney to speak clearly and stand up for himself. He credits outreach lead Avion Goordeen with getting him into the field, guiding him at events, and showing him how to turn big projects under PRISM into words and eventually action. Under his guidance, Dulaney learned to write speeches and become the person he is today.
Looking ahead, Andi is in search of more microphones and more moments to change minds. He plans to keep serving with PRISM, to take part in protests when needed, and to say yes whenever youth needs an advocate who understands what the halls of a high-school can feel like.
His advice to peers is simple; plan your days, use a real planner, carve out hours for what you love, and accept that some days will belong only to one lane. Then, as he says, “just go for it.”
