How many years were you in the JA Fellows program?

I was in the JA Fellows program for two years.

What year did you graduate from high school?

I graduated from high school in 2015.

What college do you attend, and what's your major and expected graduation year?

I am a part of Howard University’s class of 2019 as a political science and Spanish double major.

Favorite food?

My favorite foods are hot wings and burritos from Willy’s!

What are some of your recent achievements? What is your proudest achievement in life?

I currently attend Howard University on the Founder’s Scholarship, which is a full academic scholarship. I was also recently invited to join Howard’s chapter of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars. I also worked with a friend to create the Urban Youth Alliance. This program pairs up college students and high school seniors to provide guidance for the applicants through the college application process. Some of my proudest achievements in life include raising money and serving as an international volunteer with the YMCA international teen program. They also include serving as a translator in a hospital in Pereira, Colombia because I took initiative and stepped outside of my comfort zone in an effort to learn about different cultures and give back to the communities.

What is the most important thing you took from the JA Fellows program that applies to your life now?

The most important things that I took from the JA Fellows program that applies to my life now are organization and business skills. Howard is a school in which you have to be organized and have business and networking skills in order to be successful and I feel that JA prepared me well for this environment.

How do you think the JA Fellows program, in conjunction to what you have learned since leaving the program impacted your career readiness?

The JA Fellows program puts you in a business environment very early, preparing you for the real world. Even though I did not want to go to school for business, the lessons that I learned from the process that I went through with JA prepared me well for career opportunities in general. It prepared me for little things, like knowing what’s appropriate to wear to an interview and how to give presentations in front of large groups of people.