Faculty: Forestry
Program: Natural Resources – Conservation
Year: 2017
Country: Rwanda
Described as “intellectually gifted and proactive”, M. Fred has lifted himself from a difficult upbringing and has thrived in his academics and his community involvements at Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village (ASYV) in Rwanda. He ranked first out of 16 students in his combination of Math, Physics, and Computer Science, and earned the second highest possible score on Rwanda’s high school graduation test.
Realizing his weakness in English, he founded the debate club at his school as a way for him to practice his English skills, and helping his peers to improve as well. His initiative has proven to be successful, as his team has developed into confident English speakers winning the 2015 East African Debate Championship. Demonstrating his qualities as a leader, M. Fred has also been involved in community initiatives as Secretary of Gender in his Student Government as well as a participant in community service programs to make education more accessible to poor youths and female students. With his Bachelor’s degree at UBC, M.Fred hopes to continue to make a difference in people’s lives; to help the vulnerable through infrastructural restructuring that will allow them to access various services such as education and employment.