2008 Graduating Class

This section provides brief profiles and photos of the Davis United World College Scholars Program’s graduating Class of 2008.

During the preparation of this yearbook, each senior scholar responded to several questions from the Davis UWC Scholars Program. They wrote about the impact of their college experience on their lives, learning, and goals. Many also briefly described their plans and hopes for the future. The profiles that follow quote from their responses.

A B C D E-F G H I-J K L M N O-Q R S T U-V W-Z

	Udochukwu Obodo Nigeria Pearson UWC, Canada Macalester College Attending UWC was one of the best decisions I ever made. I have applied the important values that I learned there to my life at Macalester to continue to grow both academically and emotionally. My most memorable experience has been the time I spent volunteering at a cancer home. After graduation, I plan to attend medical school, so that I can have the privilege of helping people in this way.
	Brendan O’Connor USA UWC-USA Johns Hopkins University I hope to take what I’ve learned from my UWC experience about identities across cultures and apply it to the changing world of digital identity — how we express self through pulses of information, and how we form personal connections without physical realities to hold us back.
	Adaobi Onyenwe Nigeria UWC of the Adriatic, Italy Wellesley College College is a time for personal growth, both academically and socially, and being at Wellesley was an immeasurable experience. I had opportunities to travel and study in Italy and France and take myriad, amazing classes. Those experiences, coupled with the wonderful friends I made, made these four years unforgettable for me. I have grown a great deal as a person, and I’m immensely grateful for the opportunities I’ve had. I’m excited to see what comes next.
	Stijn Ortega Coppin Venezuela UWC-USA Colby College The Davis program has allowed me and many other UWC alumni to attend wonderful schools, such as Colby, and I think we are all grateful. I’m not sure where I will end up or what I will end up doing, but I am sure that Colby College and the UWC have given me important tools to be successful in practicing international understanding and “building bridges,” as Phil Geier always says.
	Bamidele Tokunbo Otemuyiwa Nigeria UWC of the Atlantic, Wales Princeton University My experience at Princeton University has been influenced by my passion for the environment. I have always believed in contributing to society in my own little way, and the opportunity to get involved with environmental change academically and through various activities at Princeton has been the highlight of my college career. I hope to make the most of this opportunity by studying biogeochemistry at graduate school.
	Batnairamdal (Nagi) Otgonshar Mongolia Red Cross Nordic UWC, Norway Macalester College Because of my education at UWC and then at Macalester, I took the initiative to create a children’s book for students in my native country. With the help of Macalester students, we created a multilingual children’s book and sent more than 1,000 copies of it to Mongolia, where they are needed. I am very thankful for my education at UWC and Macalester. This is where I have accumulated a wealth of knowledge and depth of confidence that have shaped who I am today.
	Aadhithi Padmanabhan India UWC of South East Asia, Singapore Harvard College Majoring in religion, I have had the opportunity to examine many UWC themes in an academic context. I engaged with ideas of tolerance, peace and conflict, and multiculturalism. This past summer, I returned to India to conduct an ethnographic study of Hindu nationalist women for my senior thesis. I also have tried to increase my international exposure while at Harvard, backpacking around Spain and Portugal after my freshman year and spending the next summer in Argentina interning at a public policy NGO.
	Petko Plachkov Swaziland Waterford KaMhlaba UWC, Swaziland Princeton As I enter my final year at Princeton I can reflect on what has been an incredible, challenging, and ultimately life-changing experience. It is almost the time when I have to look beyond college and how I can contribute to society in some way. It is my conviction that I will one day return to the developing world and apply the skills I have learned here to improving life there. There is no question that the UWC scholars program offers the best possible preparation for this.
	Ana Kamila Mangaliman Quijano Philippines Pearson UWC, Canada Earlham College My extensive interactions with mentors and faculty members are among the highlights of my college career. The South Asia off-campus program proved to be a priceless exposure to fascinating cultures and peoples. The UWC experience has opened my mind and encouraged me to challenge peers as I learn from them. I plan to do years of service and/or find a job in the financial or corporate world, hoping to make good use of my economics and HDSR majors.
	Nondumiso Qwabe Swaziland Waterford KaMhlaba UWC, Swaziland Middlebury College At UWC, I decided I wanted to study abroad, but I never envisioned this journey of change and the discovery of the pieces within me that continue to motivate my decisions. After three years at Middlebury, I understand what Gandhi meant when he said “You must be the change you want to see in the world.” Shelby Davis’s generosity continues to serve as a reminder that humility comes before honor as I transition to the next page in life and embrace all the changes.