Sreeya Kairomkonda- 2019 Ascend St Vrain Scholarship recipient
In 2019, Sreeya was one of our Ascend St Vrain Scholarship recipients. She remained eligible to renew her scholarship in 2020, 2021, and 2022.
In 2022, she also received the AAUW scholarship. Sreeya graduated from Niwot High School in 2019. In the fall of 2019, she began her studies in Biomedical Sciences at Colorado State University.
She wishes to pursue a MD degree and continue her research that will improve healthcare in rural areas after receiving her degree from CSU in May 2023. She writes, “Growing up in a rural community of India, my family struggled to pay for necessary medicine as it was too expensive, especially when my grandma was suffering from cervical cancer.” Her hopes are to discover cost effective drugs as many people can’t afford the medications they need to treat their illnesses.
In addition, she is passionate about creating a welcoming and encouraging environment for women of color and other marginalized communities, especially in STEM fields. She writes, “Being a woman of color in a heavily male dominated field, I have struggled with finding a community in which I feel safe and valued. Wanting change, I joined the Meitnerium chapter of Iota Sigma Pi (national organization for women in chemistry). Currently, I serve as the Vice President and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion committee chair.” This leadership role has granted her a start to a mentorship program with girls in high schools and create scholarships to support undergraduate minorities in science. She writes, “Science is a field for everyone regardless of someone’s gender, race, sexual orientation, etc.. I hope to keep working on building a community that values the uniqueness of everyone and supports everyone.”
We are honored to have awarded Sreeya scholarships we administer. We congratulate her on her achievements thus far and wish her much success as she pursues her dreams of becoming a doctor.
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