With her win as best lead actress in a drama, actress and Oak Park Independent School alumna Zendaya Coleman is the youngest person ever to receive an Emmy in this category. Zendaya received this award for her role as Rue in the HBO show “Euphoria.”

At 24 years old, Zendaya is already an experienced artist, with dozens of songs and roles in two Disney channel shows, 12 movies and an HBO series under her belt.

“This is pretty crazy,” Zendaya said after winning the award. “Thank you to all of the other incredible women in this category, I admire you so much.”

OPIS teacher Kate Thompson has known Zendaya since she was in middle school. She was her teacher while she attended OPIS and worked alongside Zendaya’s studio teacher, Monique Fisher. Together, the two teachers called themselves “Team Z.”

“I’m so proud of her,” Thompson said. “She’s very hard working and she’s very dedicated and it couldn’t have happened to a better human being, honestly.”

Thompson described Zendaya as a very “hard working, but down to earth” person. 

“She’s very passionate about social justice and equity,” Thompson said. “She just did a podcast with Michelle Obama. I think it was last week about … getting out to vote.”

As an OPIS teacher Thompson has seen her students do “phenomenal things” and achieve their dreams.

“I just personally say to all of you to follow your dreams because I’ve seen it firsthand,” Thompson said. “Oftentimes we think, ‘Oh, that’s great for that person, but I can’t do it,’ but I think we all can. I think all of you have the capability of doing amazing things so whatever that may be, I say follow your dreams.”