Alliance Honors Refugee Students as Stars Among Us Scholarship Winners

The Alliance for Multicultural Community Services will award $11,400 in scholarships to fifteen outstanding refugee students on Friday, July 22.

The Stars Among Us scholarships will be presented to children from refugee families going into high school and in college in a ceremony at 10 a.m. at the Alliance’s office, 6440 Hillcroft, on the fifth floor. 

The student winners represent nine countries.  The scholarships are designed to encourage refugee and immigrant children to continue their education and to help families pay for school uniforms and supplies, extracurricular school activities and post-secondary education.  The selection criteria include both academic achievement and community service.

Each of the six middle school graduates going into high school will receive a $400 scholarship.  The nine college students will each receive a $1,000 scholarship.

Since 2001, the Alliance has awarded $139,400 to 152 students from refugee families from eighteen countries.

The 2011 Stars Among Us scholarship winners are:

Middle School Graduates

Mr. Ganga Adhikari                Bhutan             Fondren Middle School

Ms. Mandodara Biswa            Bhutan             Fondren Middle School

Mr. Paul Dingaoramaye          Chad                Las Americas Middle School

Ms. Parbitra Ghimira             Bhutan             Fondren Middle School

Mr. Abinash Tamang              Bhutan             Fondren Middle School

Ms. Rahwal Woldegebrial       Eritrea             Las Americas Middle School

College Students

Ms. Riam Abdulwahab            Iraq                  University of Houston

Ms. Haneen Al Rawi               Iraq                  University of Houston

Ms. Randa H. Alraimi             Yemen             Houston Community College

Ms. Linh Tu Chau                   Vietnam          University of Houston

Mr. Q. Minh Nguyen               Vietnam          University of Texas

Ms. Rose Ndebee                   Nigeria            Texas Southern University

Ms. Zinah Rasheed                Iraq                  Houston Community College

Ms. Feven Kesete Tsada         Ethiopia           Houston Community College   

Ms. Eden Kesete Tsada          Ethiopia           Texas Lutheran University

The Alliance’s mission is to provide a comprehensive mix of social and community development services to refugees, immigrants and low-income residents of Harris County to help them become self-sufficient and improve their quality of life.  These services are delivered with linguistic and cultural competence and are designed to empower individuals, families and communities to succeed.  Alliance services include job training and counseling, interpretation, immigration services, ESL classes, financial tutoring, savings assistance and after-school programs.