Spirit of the I.E. - Santiago High School senior and Miss California Teen Pageant runner-up Shayleena Wijerathna discusses autism awareness

Shayleena Wijerathna, her mother Ronika, and K-Frog's Pepper
Photo credit Heather Froglear / Audacy

Shayleena Wijerathna, who’s going into her senior year of high school at Santiago High School in Corona came in as first runner up at the Miss California Teen Pageant last month. Her platform is Autism Awareness, and has written a children’s book called “Difference Is Beautiful,” told from the perspective of a six year old with autism. She hopes to be able to sell enough copies of the book to be able to print enough copies to donate to over 1,000 school districts in California. She and her mother Ronika discuss autism awareness.

Featured Image Photo Credit: Heather Froglear / Audacy