Sakeenah Shabazz (COL ’15)
Johanny Lopez (SNHS ’15)
Noel Mendoza (SFS ’12)
Kalia Vang (COL ’13)
Biographies of the recipients are below. Again, muchas gracias to the members of our Selection Committee for taking on the tough task of thoroughly reviewing all scholarship applications and selecting our recipients from a group of accomplished Hoyas.
Sakeenah Shabazz (COL ’15)
Sakeenah was born and raised in San Diego, California. She is the seventh child out of eight children and the first to attend a four-year university. Sakeenah chose to attend Georgetown University because it was far from home and would provide her with an experience that she could not get at any other institution. One of Sakeenah’s goals in life is to travel to every continent (except Antarctica)! After graduating from Georgetown, with a degree in human science, Sakeenah plans to attend medical school to become a doctor of obstetrics and gynecology.
Johanny Lopez (NHS ’15)
Johanny comes to Georgetown University by way of the Dominican Republic where she was born and raised. In 2005, Johanny moved to the United States with her family. Johanny has come a long way as an immigrant to this country. As an English Language Learner, Johanny excelled academically and was her high school valedictorian. Johanny’s determination comes from her desire to help underprivileged communities. As a high school student, Johanny mentored struggling middle school students, tutoring them and encouraging them to pursue their interests. Johanny currently studies international health at Georgetown University’s School of Nursing and Health Studies and hopes to pursue a career in medicine. Her goal is to work to end health inequalities in the Dominican Republic. International health, Johanny says, is the link between her passion for medicine and her desire to help underprivileged communities.
Noel Mendoza (SFS ’12)
Noel is a senior in the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown and is pursuing a degree in culture and politics with an emphasis on U.S. Latino education, literature, and socioeconomic issues. Noel is originally from Los Angeles, California where he graduated from Verbum Dei High School. At Georgetown, Noel works for the Office of the President. He is also the founder and current coordinator of La Casita, Georgetown’s first recognized Latino-interest house. Noel also participates as a member of Ritmo y Sabor and has served as a tutor for DC Schools and Cristo Rey Tutoring, a student organization that tutors students from the Cristo Rey Network high school in Takoma Park, Maryland. In addition to all this, Noel is currently the President of Chi Chapter’s La Unidad Latina, Lambda Upsilon Lambda Fraternity, Inc. While in Washington D.C., Noel has interned for the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and has become involved with the Hispanic Heritage Foundation. After graduation, Noel plans to work before pursuing a graduate degree in public policy.
Kalia Vang (COL ‘13)
Kalia is a Junior in the College, pursuing a government major and minors in sociology and women and gender Studies. She was born and raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. As a first-generation Hmong-American and college student, Kalia seeks to empower underrepresented, vulnerable communities with her Georgetown education. Through political activism and community and campus involvement, Kalia demonstrates a passion for public service and coalition building. Her contributions to the immigrant community have been pivotal to her Georgetown experience; she educated the Georgetown community about the DREAM Act, tutored an immigrant child through the DC Schools Project, advocates for comprehensive immigration reform, and recently established a Georgetown mentoring branch for an Arlington-based non-profit, Educación Para Nuestro Futuro (Education for Our Future). She promotes diversity, inclusion, and social justice through her experience with Georgetown's Students of Color Alliance and the competitive Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Summer Internship Program. In addition, Kalia enjoys Bollywood dancing, exploring DC, and reading.
