Madelyn is enrolled at the University of Hawaii and is pursuing a Bachelor’s in Sociology. She has maintained a strong 3.86 GPA and is looking forward to graduating. Madelyn is a remarkable scholar who has managed to work and attend school full-time all while being a leader in her family. Despite having to endure a 60-mile round-trip commute to school in her 2001 Hyundai, Madelyn’s strength has allowed her to keep pushing forward to receive her education. She hopes to continue her education and attend graduate school. She plans on specializing in trauma recovery and working with survivors of domestic violence in her career. Madelyn believes that her Jeannette Rankin Scholar Grant has helped her not only financially, but socially and emotionally as well. Carrying on with her education has given her a boost of self-esteem and personal identity.

“To carry forth the torch of humanitarian ideals and to fight for justice and the rights for all humans to be treated with compassion and dignity have been my goals throughout this process. I remain true to those goals and am better equipped now to carry them out. Receiving my BA will open opportunities for me to implement these ideals with the public I will serve, and in a way that is also sustainable to me, a woman who also must support herself independently.”