High School: Rancho Buena Vista High School
College: University of Pennsylvania

What to the rest of the world appear as barriers, to Shabnam they are opportunities for growth. In academics, she chooses the highest level courses; in community and school groups, she is the leader; and in sports, she goes against the grain. Seeking always to challenge herself, Shabnam became the first female to play in an all-male high school basketball league. Her focus is not limited to her local community. Influenced by the cultural, political and social situation of her parents’ native Iran, Shabnam strives to engage youth globally in activities to tap into their potential and benefit the future. Shabnam’s vibrant personality will most certainly spread to her new community at the University of Pennsylvania where she will study biochemistry and economics.

Words I live by:
“I, for instance, quite naturally want to live in order to satisfy the whole of my capacity for living.”  Fyodor Dostoevsky