OCA in partner with the Port of Oakland Asian Employees Association is proud to award Kholoud Abdullah with the first Frank Kiang Scholarship award. In the photo above, Frank Kiang's son Stanley Kiang presents Kholoud with the award.
Kholoud arrived in the US from Yemen two and a half years ago without any English language skills whatsoever. In the short time since, she has not only mastered English, but also has excelled in her studies, amassing a GPA that is close to 4.0! In fact, many of her classmates now look to her for assistance and she regularly tutors in various subjects including math, physics, chemistry, and biotechnology. She is known by her teachers as having "a powerful drive to succeed, a love for learning, great curiosity, a strong intellect as well as a fantastic work habits".
In addition to tutoring, Kholoud has been involved with the Journalism Club as an editor and contributor, the Environment Friend's Club as president, and in an effort at her school in Yemen to create a fund to pay tuition for girls in need, a common and widespread issue in Yemen. In the US, she has taken internships at Children's Hospital and Biotech Partners, and worked part-time at Alameda County Medical Center. She writes, "I want to go to college, but it will be tough for me to decide my major among all the subjects that I like: math, physics, chemistry, biotech, or political science. However, as a student of minority group I want to help other minority students go to college, because education can definitely be a tool to strengthen my community. I want to be a Cardiologist and help people who cannot afford medical insurance by opening my own clinic.
Congratulations Kholoud!
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