Lehigh’s mission is to provide talented students with a rigorous, life-changing university experience that will prepare them for success and enable them to lead lives of consequence. Fulfilling this mission requires more than faculty and classrooms — it requires you. The financial aid and scholarship you provide makes Lehigh’s distinctive brand of education both accessible and affordable to the most talented students.
The students who apply to Lehigh are bright, accomplished, and ambitious. They know that Lehigh graduates change the world. They come here seeking an education known for experiential learning, interdisciplinarity, and global reach — the hallmarks of the Lehigh experience.
The profiles you’re about to read exemplify those hallmarks in action. Each one is a Global Social Impact Fellow, a program supported by Lehigh’s Office of Creative Inquiry. A highly self-selected cohort, these students, from disciplines across the campus, focus on addressing sustainable development challenges in low- and middle-income countries.
Our fellows’ assignments took them to Sierra Leone, a country that has the highest maternal mortality rate in the world. One project focused on Ukweli Test Strips, an inexpensive screening device that tests for preeclampsia and urinary tract infections (UTIs). That successful effort evolved into a broader program, Innovations in Maternal Health and Cervical Cancer. Fellows assigned to that project are assisting World Hope International and the Sierra Leonean Health Ministry with a new initiative to vaccinate adolescent girls against cervical cancer.
The fellows do this work not just for the sake of an academic exercise, but to make a real-world impact. Every one of them was able to make a difference because of the support they received through financial aid.
We hope you’ll enjoy reading about these five outstanding students whose lives were transformed by their experiences — their origins, their accomplishments, their hopes for the future, and the impact they will make because you made Lehigh possible for them.
Meet the Scholars
From: Hetauda, Nepal
Pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Economics and Community and Global Health
Recipient of the College of Health Dean’s Scholarship
When her college search began, Reeza looked for a very specific kind of school: One that offered both an undergraduate degree in public health and financial aid to international students. An upperclassman friend from Nepal told Reeza about Lehigh’s College of Health. The opportunity aligned perfectly with her hopes and ambitions.
The first-year student arrived at Lehigh already committed to promoting global unity and understanding. Her passion clearly runs deep, evidenced by her extracurricular work as treasurer and ambassador for the Global Union and as a U.N. youth representative for a Nigerian NGO.
When she travels this summer as a Global Social Impact Fellow, Reeza expects to be in some familiar territory. Like Nepal, Sierra Leone also has a fragile healthcare infrastructure. She’s excited to be working with professors whose research focuses on the economic challenges so many people face in developing countries.
Meanwhile, the aspiring public health professional is learning how to navigate life as an international college student while balancing her academics and extracurricular activities. She’s steadily improving her writing and data collection skills and applying them to work on a research paper. She appreciates her advisers and more experienced peers for the chance to learn from their examples.
“I'm very proud that I'm a part of the vibrant research and learning community at Lehigh.”
Thanks to her scholarship and the knowledge and confidence that comes from earning a Lehigh degree, Reeza looks forward to the day when she can bring her expertise back to her home country to effect positive change. Her goal: Create a stronger, more equitable public health system.
From: Stormville, NY
Pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Bioengineering
Recipient of the Kurt J. Lesker III Family Endowed Scholarship
Grace is fascinated by the intersection of biology and engineering. She is exploring careers in the development of pharmaceutical therapeutics with a goal of creating innovative solutions to complex healthcare challenges. She explores this work on campus as a lab assistant to Professor Robert Skibbens and globally through her involvement with the Global Social Impact Fellowship in Sierra Leone.
Grace knew that when she came to Lehigh to study bioengineering, she would learn how innovation applies to creating medical devices. Sierra Leone afforded her a rare and exciting opportunity: to witness the process of how an actual medical device enters a nation’s healthcare system. Grace's new knowledge informs her work this summer on the Mountaintop Campus, where she continues her research in Dr. Skibbins' lab.
As a Rossin Junior Fellow, Grace serves as an ambassador for the P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science. In that role, she helps with recruiting efforts and peer mentoring and encourages her fellow young engineers to connect with faculty advisers.
Outside of her academic studies, Grace can be found at the front desk in Taylor Gym or presiding over ceremonies as the ritual chairwoman in Gamma Phi Beta.
“I’m learning how to think outside the box. If there were already answers, there wouldn’t be a problem.”
Thanks to her scholarship, Grace is learning how to fix difficult problems in the real world, starting from square one. She’s experienced firsthand the value of teamwork and ingenuity. Her growing interest in the business side of biotech strongly suggests that there’s an MBA in her future.
From: Bronx, NY
Graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Business and Economics and Marketing
Recipient of the Dippre Titus Family Endowed Scholarship
Kayla immigrated to the United States from Kingston, Jamaica, when she was two years old. A first-generation student, the newly minted graduate will be the first in her family to join a corporation when she goes to work as a Goldman Sachs consumer wealth management analyst in Dallas, Texas, this summer.
Kayla juggled many extracurriculars to make room for her Global Social Impact Fellowship. She served as president of the Lehigh Minority Business Alliance. She was an active contributor to The Brown and White. She’s also an alumna of the Baker Institute’s LehighSiliconValley program.
Her many commitments notwithstanding, Kayla’s humanity motivated her to pursue a Global Social Impact Fellowship: She wanted to be part of a program that was improving the lives of African women. Although healthcare marketing was new to the then-sophomore, Kayla learned how to communicate about preeclampsia and UTIs and how Ukweli test strips could prevent them.
Leaning into her writing and communications skills and business acumen, Kayla discovered that she welcomed her role as a leader. Working together with a teammate, the messaging research Kayla conducted in Sierra Leone eventually became a peer-reviewed literature review manuscript on strategies for creating demand for healthcare systems in low- and middle-income countries.
“I wanted these women to know that Lehigh students are willing to invest time and talent into figuring out solutions for them.”
Thanks to the experiences her scholarship made possible, Kayla leaves Lehigh equipped with some indispensable lessons about the strength of her voice and her value on a team.
From: New Milford, NJ
Pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Cognitive Science
Recipient of the Marion A. and George G. Keller ’44 Endowed Scholarship
Sterling cares deeply about helping people and systems thrive, both here at Lehigh and in the wider world. His lifelong passion for mental health has cultivated an interest in emotional development and cognitive science and, in particular, the application of cognitive science and developmental psychology to government systems.
Not surprisingly, Sterling found that the best way to make an impact on campus was through student government. Serving as chair of the Student Senate’s Health, Safety, and Wellness Committee, he understands the power of talking to the people in charge to help them see matters from the student’s perspective. Because of Sterling’s advocacy, there are now more counselors available for students in the health and wellness center. The success of that effort pushed him to make an impact all the way to West Africa.
Maternal health is personal to Sterling, who lost his own mother to cancer at a young age. The ability to contribute to the health of mothers and their families through the Global Social Impact Fellowship spoke loudly to him as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. He’s considering a research postgrad in cognitive science because of the work he was able to do in Sierra Leone.
When not studying, Sterling can be found playing basketball, reading, or creating music, which he hopes will make the days of others a little happier.
“I've met some of the most passionate, kindhearted people in my entire life through this program. It's truly been amazing.”
Sterling credits his scholarship for some invaluable life lessons in accountability. He’s learned the importance of delegation, the necessity of discipline, and the joy of working on a passionate, capable team.
From: Coopersburg, PA
Graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Molecular Biology and a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry
Recipient of the Paige D. L’Hommedieu Scholarship
Noah wasn’t sure what he wanted to do after high school, but he quickly learned that working retail wasn’t it. He enrolled part-time at Northampton Community College and did well — so well that he committed to being a full-time student and set his sights on transferring to Lehigh, his dream school.
As a new Lehigh student, Noah sought opportunities that would support both his academic work and interest in advocacy. The Global Social Impact Fellowship offered the perfect fit. He joined the Ukweli Test Strips Project in spring 2020 and has been with it through graduation, growing his skill set, taking on leadership roles, and mentoring those to whom he passed the baton after his graduation.
When not studying or working as an undergraduate researcher on campus, Noah worked as an emergency room technician at St. Luke’s Hospital. He plans to enroll in a medical-scientist training program where he will be able to further develop the expertise necessary to take on medical school in the fall of 2024.
“For me, the highest calling any human being can have is to help elevate the needs of someone else.”
Noah’s experience has delivered gifts that will help make him a successful clinician: a thick skin for confronting uncertainty, a nuanced approach to communication, and a willing curiosity to work with and learn from others. Most of all, he’s grateful for the scholarship that enabled him to complete his Lehigh education.