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A look at this year’s other finalists for the Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship:
Julia Biango is from Ridgefield, Conn., but grew up in South Carolina. She is pursuing a major in philosophy and international studies (ethics and social justice track). As a freshman she joined the Jamaica Magis service trip and returned last year to lead the student group; she cites these experiences as having helped her to understand her own identity and her Jamaican heritage. As a tutor with 4Boston at Rosie’s Place, she helped a native Spanish speaker develop greater confidence and facility in English. Last fall, Biango won a McGillicuddy Logue scholarship to study in South Africa, where she volunteered with Shawco as a mentor for primary school children in the townships. She hopes to pursue a career with an international NGO after graduation.
Elisa Bushee, a major in biochemistry from Wayland, Mass., is pursuing minors in Hispanic Studies and African and African Diaspora Studies. As a freshman, she went on a service trip to rural Virginia with the Appalachia Volunteers, which inspired her to join the Mississippi Delta Volunteers as a sophomore, and to lead the trip this year. Feeling a strong commitment to improving the education of disadvantaged children, particularly in math and science, she worked with Boston high school students through the Tutors for All program. Bushee is also an accomplished dancer, choreographer and coordinator with the Synergy Hip Hop Dance Company and the Dance Organization of Boston College. She was an OTE Residential Preceptor last summer and has also worked in the Office of Residential Life for three years. Bushee plans to use her science and math skills to strengthen STEM education in urban schools.
The son of Haitian immigrants, Ronald Claude is a Boston native majoring in international studies – this semester he is studying in South Africa. An Eagle Scout who believes in the need to build understanding through dialogue, he has been active in Dedicated Intellectuals of the People and the Sankofa Leadership and Mentoring program. Last year, he worked as a resident assistant to help 30 freshmen with their adjustment to college and also participated in the Jamaica Magis service trip. He is the AHANA Caucus Representative for the Haitian Club and a staff member of the AHANA Leadership Council, and has participated in the Model United Nations Club. Last summer he held an internship at Boston University’s African Presidential Center, where he studied African political affairs and helped organize two receptions for visiting African presidents. Following graduation, he hopes to study public policy and contribute to American policy development in Africa and the Caribbean.
Afua Laast is from the Bronx, NY, and is majoring in applied psychology and human development in the Lynch School of Education while pursuing a joint master’s in social work degree. She is a resident assistant for freshmen and sophomores this year, an experience she says has solidified both her passion for helping “marginalized” students and her communication and counseling skills. Laast has been a member of the AHANA Leadership Council and is now director of AHANA affairs for the Undergraduate Government of Boston College. Last summer she was an orientation leader and an intern at the Boston chapter of Habitat for Humanity, after having worked with them as an Appalachia Volunteer. She facilitates Dialogues on Race discussions on campus, participated in the Jamaica Magis service trip, and through the PULSE program worked with Project Bread to help people find the resources they needed to live. She plans to pursue a career in social work after completing her MSW.
Biographical information provided by the Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship Committee.