Empowering high school students

On April 17, 2014, teachers, parents and children from the Watertown School system met together to discuss how parents can support children in applying to good colleges and universities, secure financial aid, and use school resources to empower themselves. Saheli empowered South Asian parents. We offered Urdu, Pushto, and Hindi speakers to greet families newly arrived in the United States from Pakistan, India and Afghanistan who are unfamiliar with the college application process.

Organized by teachers Allison Levit, Barbara Gortych and Marie Mele, the meeting was held in a beautiful lecture hall and a variety of foods were served. IAGB member Syed Rizvi connected Saheli to two visiting scholars at Harvard University who spoke in Urdu and Pushto. The Saheli Board gave 10 high school students funds to purchase Charlie tickets to attend college fairs and network with college counselors. Saheli encouraged parents to send girl children to college and connected students with the Asian American Student Success Program at UMass Boston.