American Association of Yemeni Students and Professionals Honors Mothana Alsoofi with Student of the Year
The Yemeni American News
Dearborn, Mich. – Through the American Association of Yemeni Students and Professionals, 14 students were able to receive scholarships meant to establish a pathway for achieving their dreams of higher education. Along with 13 other students, one student was honored with being AAYSP’s student of the year – Mothana Alsoofi.
Alsoofi is a Fordson High School student who will be attending Stanford University next fall. His achievements are vast, with massive contributions to STEM, Sports and Community Engagement extracurricular activities.
“The Student of the year award goes to an exceptional student who committed himself to academic excellence and community service,” said Adeeb Mozip, National Board Vice President of AAYSP.
Alsoofi’s desire for his future is to become a software engineer after obtaining a degree in technology and business-focused majors. He says he wants to use his degree “as a vessel for bringing my dreams to reality.”
“AAYSP is a great coalition of members dedicated to advancing the Yemeni American Community through education,” Alsoofi said. “I am proud to be a member of that community and am proud to do my part in achieving that goal. This scholarship will help make that mission easier, and for that, I am eternally grateful.”
At Fordson High School, Alsoofi was exceptionally involved with his schools affairs and the betterment of the community around him. Completing 147 hours of community service – including serving as Chair of the Dearborn Youth Affairs Commission – he’s provided a generous donation of countless hours for the people around him.
“As a Yemeni-American, it was always difficult to find that happy medium where I was open to new things and truly growing while maintaining my sense of identity and pride in my cultural traditions,” Alsoofi said. “Through meeting others in similar positions, I was able to navigate the continuum between clinging to my familial and cultural traditions and being “Americanized.” I learned to embrace my cultural and ethnic background, but also to walk into every room with an open mind, letting go of my preconceived notions to make strides towards growing as an individual.”
As a son of immigrants, Alsoofi also expressed his gratitude to his family for taking a perilous journey, risking their lives, for a better life for their children.
“I come from a family of immigrants who laid their lives on the line to make the prospect of a better life a reality,” Alsoofi said. “As Yemenis, we are all too familiar with these incredible obstacles.
In Alsoofi’s immediate future, the work is just beginning. He plans to work through college, maintaining financial security while attending one of the most prestigious universities in the world. While his industriousness will get him far along at Stanford, this scholarship, he says, will definitely help.
“This scholarship will help me purchase the books and other costly resources needed for each class,” Alsoofi said. “This scholarship will help alleviate my concerns over my financial security, and thus enable me with the gift of being able to take control of my future. Having autonomy over my future is a gift that I aim to provide to my people in the war-ravaged Yemen, and this scholarship will be a first step towards realizing that goal.”
The scholarship award for this year’s AAYSP Student of the Year was sponsored by the Yemeni American News. The Yemeni American News would like to congratulate all of those who received scholarships through the generous donations made to AAYSP.
Along with Alsoofi, 13 other students received scholarships for their achievements in an out of the classroom. Those students are: Samia Abdullah, Ibrahim Aldhaibani, Afrah Mohamed, Badr Aljamal, Mariam Aljahmi, Wallyaldeen Alhomaidi, Idriss Saleh, Nada Almasmori, Amalaak Mohamed, Nader Barman, Hassan Saleh, Saleh Alshemmam, and Abdullah Yafai.
“Congratulations to all the students,” Mozip said. “We wish them all the best in their pursuit of higher education in all of these exceptional higher education institutions they’re attending.”
The American Association of Yemeni Students and professionals is a federally-recognized 501(3)c nonprofit organization. Their mission is “to build empowered Yemeni-American Communities with infrastructure and resources to maximize academic success, community engagement, and eliminate the cultural barriers concerning education.”
