Current Scholars

College/University Partners, Current Scholars, Social Impact, Technology, News Item

Connecticut College Scholar Awarded Watson Fellowship

Connecticut College senior Sophie Demaisy ’24 (Canada, Pearson UWC) will travel to Costa Rica, Brazil, Kenya, Madagascar, and Indonesia to explore sustainable agriculture through coffee production.

Angel-lee Randone, wearing black pants and a beige tank top, poses to the right of a large academic poster full of charts and pictures of the brain.

College/University Partners, Current Scholars, Education & Research, Health & Medicine, News Item

Assessing the Effects of Head Trauma on Athletes

Angel-lee Randone (Thailand, UWC Thailand, Rochester ’24) works as a researcher investigating the long-term effects of repeated concussions on athletes at the University of Rochester’s Strong Memorial Hospital.

Aylin Ak, wearing a black blazer and white blouse, poses for a photo in front of a data-heavy academic poster mounted to a tri-pod in a conference room with other posters.

Current Scholars, UWC High Schools, Education & Research, Health & Medicine, Interview/Profile

Researching for Solutions to Complex Diseases

When Aylin Ak ’24 (Germany, UWC in Mostar) learned that her grandfather had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s she became passionate about “research that improves human health by discovering actionable solutions to complicated diseases.”

Melvin Osei Opoku, wearing a white lab coat, using an electric pipette to put liquid in a vial. Behind him are shelves of supplies in a research laboratory.

College/University Partners, Current Scholars, Education & Research, Health & Medicine, Interview/Profile

Digging Deep into Research and Neural Engineering

Melvin Osei Opoku ’26 (Ghana, UWC-USA) works in a lab at the University of Florida where he helps investigate how certain bacteria can produce organic chemicals called terpenoids.

Zakia Maryam Najafizada, wearing a maroon shirt and a large pink scarf, poses for a portrait in front of building made of glass and white metal.

College/University Partners, Current Scholars, Education & Research, Social Impact, Technology, Interview/Profile

Forging a Learning Path for Afghan Women

Zakia Maryam Najafizada ’24 (UWC Red Cross Nordic) responded to the Taliban’s 2021 takeover of her country, and its resulting barriers to higher education for women, by developing an online English-learning application for Afghan females.

College/University Partners, Current Scholars, Education & Research, Social Impact, Interview/Profile

Building New Futures for Young Haitians

Wilhem Hector (Haiti, UWC Red Cross Nordic, MIT ’25) founded and runs the Hector Foundation to help motivated Haitian high schoolers build the knowledge and skills they need to access higher education abroad.

Anna Diagne Sène, wearing a white hijab and a black shirt, flashes the peace scene while taking a selfie in front of a large group of young adults on the top deck of a boat out on the water.

College/University Partners, Current Scholars, Social Impact, Interview/Profile

Promoting Peace and Citizenship on Campus and at Home

For the last two years, Anna Diagne Sène (Senegal, UWC Red Cross Nordic, Macalester ’24) has led planning for Macalester’s first Peace Day celebrations.

Hasan Jashari, wearing a gray suit over a black sweater, sits at a wooden desk in the UN chamber. In front of him is a digital screen that reads "Belgium" in blue text.

College/University Partners, Current Scholars, Politics & Law, Social Impact, Interview/Profile

Acting on the “Common Humanity in Us All”

Having interned last summer with his country’s mission to the UN, Hasan Jashari (Belgium, UWC South East Asia, Lehigh ’24) said that “despite the challenges we face globally, I truly believe the future is global, and closer cooperation on that level is crucial.

College/University Partners, Current Scholars, Business & Economics, Interview/Profile

Crafting Communications for “Lasting Impact”

A communications major at Lake Forest who aims for a career in public relations, Juan Jose Campos Villalta ’24 (Costa Rica, UWC Costa Rica) describes himself as a “devoted storyteller.”

Nico Quijano Franco, wearing a black short-sleeve shirt, smiles for a portrait while standing in front of a tree trunk to his left, and a green lawn leading back to a brick building on his right.

College/University Partners, Current Scholars, Health & Medicine, Interview/Profile

A “Future Nobel Laureate” Focuses on Global Health

Among those who made an all-expenses-paid trip to Sweden last December for the annual Nobel Week Dialogue was Nico Quijano Franco (Colombia, UWC-USA, Earlham ’23.5).