Meheret discovered her passion for helping others at Highline. Now she’s helping improve health care around the globe.

As a Highline Running Start student, Meheret took a course that affected her personally and academically. In Honors 100, students receive personal academic counseling and create a portfolio to compete for entrance and scholarships at four-year schools.

“Honors 100 is very different from any other class I have taken in my college career because it forces you to look within yourself and recognize your unique place in the world,” said Meheret, who grew up in Ethiopia. “Once you find that place to embrace it and use it your advantage instead of hiding it.”

After graduating from Highline, she attended Whitman College in Walla Walla, Wash., and won a prestigious national award – a $10,000 Project for Peace Grant.

She went back to her homeland in summer 2008 and launched her project, “Reducing Stigma for Ethiopian Children Orphaned to HIV/AIDS.” The project focused on improving the lives of HIV/AIDS orphans by providing educational books, a soccer and volleyball league and a safe place for reading and recreational activities.

As of June 2010, Meheret works for the HIV/AIDS Outreach Prevention and Education (HOPE) team for City Year, a Washington, D.C. group, that provides middle-school students with resources they need before becoming sexually active.

She will start working on her master’s degree in Public Health at the University of Washington in fall 2010.

Learn more about Meheret and Project for Peace Grants: http://www.davisprojectsforpeace.org/

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