The opportunity to grow up with multiple educational and work experiences in a global context has made me the kind of educator I am today: one focused on using the extensive opportunities I have had to foster positive change to improve lives through education. Studying at the Center for International Education at UMass nurtured my practical approach to education and my role as a global citizen.

Since my graduation, I have concurrently worked as educator on two fronts that are dear to my personal and professional goals.

First, I have worked in various capacities in the Amherst Public School System and the community at large. I have been an employee and a volunteer on individual school committees. Shortly before graduating, I was hired by Amherst Regional High School as an instructor to work with students needing extra academic support in general education courses. After graduation, I continued working with special education students in Center for Diverse Learners' program and co-served as the 2014/15 ARHS Class Adviser.

I currently work in the Academic Individualized Mainstream Support program for students with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder. As a parent and educator, it is rewarding to see youth overcome obstacles and succeed in school regardless of differences in learning capabilities.

The second front of my educational pursuits and one that rightly demands most of my energy is the Keren-Wasike Children's Hope (KWCH) organization in Mbale, Uganda. I am the co-founder and coordinator of KWCH, which is a registered, grass-roots NGO founded in 2010 in Eastern Uganda with a focus on the holistic social and economic needs of children in the region. So far, the organization is supporting at least 25 children, ages 6 to 21 years, to stay in school. Most KWCH beneficiaries are from environments where even accessing transport and communication (esp. the Internet) is almost impossible.

Seeing the world through two different lenses helped me focus my efforts, especially when there is so much waste in one part of the world and so few resources in another which faces endless social and economic problems. Key reasons that prompted my involvement in KWCH included: the rapidly deteriorating condition of education in Uganda; high dropout rates; increasing numbers of out-of-school children; and the lack of skills needed to find employment.

Recently KWCH has embarked on a second phase of development - establishing a Vocational Training Center for future sustainability of its members and welfare of local communities. I hope my passion and the enthusiasm for all those assisting in empowering the most vulnerable children of our world will motivate others to support organizations like KWCH.