Our Program on Tuesday, March was the incredible Padee Yang our club sponsored International Scholar and she spoke about her experiences as Master’s Degree in Peace and Conflict Resolution in England, her host club involvement and her plans for the future. She first thanked our club for the $30,000 scholarship to atten
d The School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London, England. “This Rotary Scholarship has definitely changed my life” said Padee. Her host club was the St. Marylebone Rotary Club of London and mentors there were President Margaret Pollock and John Bash. She attended meeting both in person and on Zoom during the pandemic. She attended the Robert Burns Night club fundraiser Triplet Orchestra, Marylebone Music Festival and the Rotary London District Conference and was introduced along with 25 other Peace Scholars. She also was the speaker at the Rotary club meetings of St. Marylebone and Battersea in London.
d The School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London, England. “This Rotary Scholarship has definitely changed my life” said Padee. Her host club was the St. Marylebone Rotary Club of London and mentors there were President Margaret Pollock and John Bash. She attended meeting both in person and on Zoom during the pandemic. She attended the Robert Burns Night club fundraiser Triplet Orchestra, Marylebone Music Festival and the Rotary London District Conference and was introduced along with 25 other Peace Scholars. She also was the speaker at the Rotary club meetings of St. Marylebone and Battersea in London. While she was abroad she also served as Field Coordinator for Starfish, Community Engagement Officer at the Refugee Council and International Development Officer for ILC Africa (Her favorite experience in 20220 besides her studies. She FOUND SOAS College to be an excellent small college and an incredible cultural experience with all the other students from all over the world. Her coursework was challenging covering all aspects of violence and conflict, gender, global health, Aid, war to peace transition and Persian studies. She even picked up another language to add to her several other languages she speaks! She loved studying at the SOAS Library which is also a regional library.
Padee is currently interviewing with two organizations to gain experience so that she can attain her future goal of being a manager or consultant in Mental Health and addressing gender based violence. The first organization is the International Republican Institute (IRI) that works to advance democracy worldwide. The have invited her to work in Iran as a Program Associate in communications, technology and women’s rights. She likes the opportunity to be Iran but is still negotiating pay and benefits. The other organization is Chemonics that promotes meaningful change helping people in Africa to live healthier, more productive, and independent lives. This would be a Senior Program Associate in East and Southern Africa Business Unit. She wants to see if Chemonics makes her an offer before deciding on which position to take.