Fanta Jamissa | Since 2020

Oakley, California

Freedom High School | Class of 2020
University of California, Berkeley | Class of 2024
Major | B.S. Public Health
Study Abroad: University of Ghana  |  Pan Afrikan Social Movements: Past, Present and Future
Awarded the State Department's Gilman Scholarship 

Read more from Fanta
Fanta's Powerpoint on Finding More Money for College

FROM FANTA’S HIGH SCHOOL ESSAY:
     Throughout my childhood, my mom stressed the correlation between education and one’s advancement in society. She referenced our Sierra Leonean (West African) culture to ingrain the concept of our privilege to receive quality education free of cost—with the help of scholarships—and encouraged us to make the most of this gift. The sole fact that I was born in America allows my life to have a completely different trajectory than my family members who are my age in Sierra Leone.
     In addition to the need for education, there is a desperate need for health care reform; we need a bigger focus on lowering the disparity between healthcare systems in developing nations with concrete changes in policy and implementation. This has had a monumental impact on my career goals. While majoring in either public health or biology, I will work to gain knowledge to help dismantle barriers and create real solutions.
     I want to become a physician and use my knowledge and platform to influence public policy. Although it will be some time before I become a physician, I’ll focus on my background as a source of motivation to change the the way we look at healthcare in the US and across the globe.