Daryeel Magazine
Last month, a Minnesota high school student received national attention after being accepted to all eight Ivy League schools plus Stanford, Georgetown and the University of Minnesota. After weeks of weighing the options, Munira Khalif has decided to attend Harvard University.
“I was humbled to be able to choose amongst these incredible schools, and it was truly a difficult decision,” Khalif said. “But after visiting I was able to envision myself making Harvard University my home for the next four years.”
Khalif, a senior at Mounds Park Academy in St. Paul, said she plans to major in political science and make a positive impact on the world through public service.
In addition to her exceptional academic record and vigorous class workload, Khalif is a state speech champion and founder and leader of MPA’s Social Consciousness Club.
World contributions
Khalif is one of just nine young people from around the world to receive the UN Special Envoy for Global Education’s Youth Courage Award for her work as a young education activist.
She was also appointed as A World at School Global Youth Ambassador, working to promote universal education.
“I believe Munira has great potential to affect change on the world stage, given her combination of intelligence, sensitivity, powerful internal drive, practical skills and charisma,” Lisa Pederson, director of college counseling at MPA, said. “She interacts positively with people of different backgrounds, opposing viewpoints and ignorance.”
Khalif founded Lighting the Way, a non-profit campaign to make education accessible for East African youth, especially girls, by focusing on scholarships, building libraries, and mitigating sanitation issues. She has also served as a teen ambassador and advocate with Girl Up, a campaign of the United Nations Foundation that mobilizes American girls to take action on behalf of their counterparts in other countries.
Source: myfoxtwincities.com
