Pakistani-American Girl
Is a True Achiever
By Ras H. Siddiqui
The
Pakistani- and Muslim-American community in the Sacramento,
California region is very proud of its youth, and especially
so of young Tanya Syed of Roseville.
Tanya has achieved a great deal at the age of fifteen. She
has just graduated with many honors from Wood Creek High
School in Placer County including being its youngest Valedictorian
ever. Being a fifteen-year old Valedictorian in a graduating
class of seventeen to eighteen year olds is quite a feat.
Her Principal at the awards ceremony had this to say about
her, “…here is a young lady who broke every
mold since she came to this school…”
Tanya won the President’s Outstanding Academic Excellence
Award (from US President and Secretary of Education), the
Bank of America Achievement Plaque for Science & Math,
the SLC award for Environmental Science, the US Air Force
award for Math and Science, the Kevin Chang D.D.S. Foundation
Scholarship and the Bill Santucci-Ted Gaines Scholarship.
Being accepted to a college, to one of its pre-medical programs,
and being one of only 30 students from the entire country
to make it there, is a remarkable achievement. And even
more remarkable is the fact that she will be starting at
USC right around her sixteenth birthday. And she has already
earned herself a future spot in its medical school with
this special program.
Tanya is the daughter of Naeem and Durriya Syed of Roseville
and along with her brother Zaki, is a member of a very socially
active family. Her dad remains a very motivated American,
her mother is very active in local Sacramento interfaith
circles, Zaki is a Rap performer who espouses American-Muslim
causes and along with Tanya the family has devoted a great
deal of time and energy to the community, especially to
the local SALAM organization, and its Sunday Islamic School.
One can only add that a great deal of energy and hard work
must have gone into her success. They say that it takes
a village to raise a child. Well this child has now made
our Sacramento village proud, and we collectively wish her
future success. Inshallah, she will become a great doctor.
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