Refia BilgicGeneseo High School
Refia has an extensive list of achievements and community service in her short high school career. She watched her father every step of the way create his own frozen yogurt shop, where Refia now works. The lessons learned by watching her father instilled incredible morals in her. Refia’s morals are on display when it comes to her volunteer experience. She has held English classes for refugees in Greece via Zoom, organized coat, clothing and food drives for the holidays, has created signage to raise awareness for minorities, mentors’ young students, and writes environmental pages for Salaam Magazine. Refia is also extremely involved with her school. She is in multiple clubs and has maintained a 97% GPA. Refia is also a three-time world finalist for Odyssey of the Mind—a program to help develop creative problem solvers.
Your dedication and hard work are truly an inspiration to us all, Refia! Congratulations on your scholarship!
One interesting fact about yourself:
I am bilingual (fluent in both English and Turkish).
Where will you be attending college?
I will be attending Cornell University and majoring in Applied Economics and Management.
How do you plan to use your scholarship funds?
The money will be used toward my university room and boarding expenses.
What parts of high school are you most proud of?
I am most proud of my Odyssey of the Mind accomplishments. My team has won multiple regional and state championships. I am also proud of the relationships that I was able to create with my teachers and classmates.
What are you looking forward to most in your college career?
I am looking forward to meeting new people and making new friends.
