Lake Washington High School
 
As Makena Weber nears the end of high school, she is very excited to attend a four-year college while pursuing a major in biological sciences or in molecular and cellular biology.  While doing this, she plans to complete the prerequisites for medical school and continue toward becoming a pediatric or general surgeon.  Makena has taken many advanced placement classes and is proud of her completion of the Advance Placement Capstone Diploma.  Makena has dedicated lots of time into giving to the community and fueling her passion for community service.  She has helped organize blood drives for Bloodworks Northwest and has participated in raising money for families in the Philippines and in Venezuela.  Makena also enjoys volunteering within her school community.  She serves as a peer tutor for classmates every week in subjects ranging from biology to Spanish, and is part of her school’s mentor program, working with students who are new to the Lake Washington High School community to make them feel welcome.  She has also volunteered as a lacrosse coach for kindergarteners.  Makena is very proud of her participation in community service and hopes to continue these activities throughout college as well.
 
Juanita High School
 
Kathleen Pham describes herself as passionate and ambitious, one who puts her fullest efforts into her work, and one who tries never to leave anything unfinished.  She listens to everyone’s ideas and ask for opinions because she understands what it is like not to be heard.  Kathleen’s high priority goals are getting into her dream university and majoring in pre-dentistry, because they will help lead to her career goal.  Kathleen describes facing significant systemic challenges such as racism.  She is one-hundred percent Vietnamese, yet not fluent in that language.  She attended Vietnamese school for six years and can now read and speak the language.  She counts as accomplishments becoming a drum major, and receiving a varsity letter for a sport at which she says she was terrible when she started.  Her most important community involvement is working on the Hope Link food drive at school.  Her father was a technical designer at Boeing, but was laid-off.  Her mother, an accountant, had to stop working due to cancer.  Her parents must feed three children, she says, and adds that while she will never understand the extent of others’ hardships, she does understand the hardships of providing for one’s family.