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A young Nigerian lady , Nneoma Nwankwo has made her parents and country proud as she emerged this years’s student of the year in Virginia Tech University in the United States.
Nwankwo has maintained a 3.9 Grade Point Average and will be graduating in May 2016, with a degree in Political Science.
In 2013, she conducted an independent study into the negative effects of poor Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) on the education and socio-economic empowerment of girls in underserved areas of sub-Saharan Africa.
She was honored with the Austin Michelle Cloyd Fellowship for Social Justice in 2014 for her proposal to pursue service-oriented MHM research in West Africa.
She also excelled last year when findings from her research was published by Virginia Tech’s Innovation for Agricultural Training and Education.
Nwankwo says she is passionate about making sure Nigerian women’s voices are heard.
“For me, it was necessary for women’s voices to be heard; thus, in Nigeria, I conducted focus groups and workshops with young women. In the Republic of Niger, I participated in the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council and United Nations Women menstrual hygiene training, which were aimed at lobbying national policymakers to establish MHM as a top priority in water and sanitation legislation. Through these unique experiences, I found passion in working in the service of others.”
She has also served as the fundraising chair for the African Students Association and raised money for a local charity in Ethiopia; she is a coach at the Virginia Tech Writing Center, and was International columnist for the Collegiate Times student-run newspaper.
Describing her, Virgina Tech News said;
The Virginia Tech Undergraduate Student of the Year award recognizes a graduating student who has achieved overall excellence during his or her undergraduate career at the university. The recognition is the most prestigious non-academic undergraduate award given at Virginia Tech and is awarded to a student who has exceptional and balanced achievement in academics, leadership, and service. The recipient exemplifies the qualities and values important to a Virginia Tech education, captured in the university motto, Ut Prosim (meaning, That I May Serve).
Nneoma Nwankwo has received Scholarships from Overton R. Johnson and Accenture.She has also received Scholarships from Overton R. Johnson and Accenture.
