Keshala
2016-
Keshala has finished her freshmen year of pre-med school at SPU and did amazingly well, carrying a GPA of 3.66 with a very full class load and a part time job on campus! This is quite an accomplishment for any freshmen, but amazing for someone newly immigrated to the US. This summer she is busy job shadowing at a teaching hospital in Sri Lanka and enjoying time with her friends and family. Her experience as a pre-med student here in the US and the experience she is gaining through job shadowing has made her even more determined to become a doctor. Thank you all so much for your support and encouragement, Keshala is a great example of someone being able to reach their full potential in life regardless of financial and situational obstacles. In Sri Lanka this summer, she has been an honored guest speaker, telling her extraordinary story to aspiring students.
Headed in for her first time in the OR.
2015-
Keshala has been accepted to pre-med school with a generous scholarship to Seattle Pacific University! Keshala was actually accepted to several different US Universities, but SPU has an amazing pre-med program with a 90% acceptance rate to medical school. She moved to the United States in March of 2015 and spent the spring attending Bellevue College while acclimating to her new home. Her many years as a C.O.L.O.R scholarship recipient set her up for success and enabled her to easily transition into the US education system. She was actually so well prepared that she has tested out of many lower level classes and has required no ESL prerequisites What she enjoys most, is that her professors what to hear her opinion and highly value student input. We are so very proud of all this young woman has accomplished and excited to see what her future holds.
SPU Freshmen Welcome Ceremony
2014-
Keshala was the first child awarded a C.O.L.O.R. Scholarship. She has been in the program for the last 9 years and has made great achievements during that time. She is in the 12th grade and ranked 2nd in her class. Keshala represents her school in all Island competitions and is frequently the English announcer for events. She is currently awaiting results for her A level exams while studying for her upcoming SAT and TOFEL exams. In the summer of 2010 she placed 2nd in a county wide spoken English competition. Keshala spent 3 years studying at the British Council but is now focusing her studies on qualifying for entrance to the University system in the United States. Keshala wants to be a doctor and is interested in Neurology.
2012-
C.O.L.O.R. scholarship recipient, Keshala, enjoyed a hard earned trip to Great Britain through the DFID Global Curriculum Project Grant. She spent a week living with a British Host Family and experiencing life as a teenager in the west for the first time. There have actually been many first for Keshala including her first time off the island of Sri Lanka, her first plane ride, and it’s definitely the longest time she’s been away from her family. She seems to be relishing in her independence and seizing the opportunities before her; she has also mentioned all the great shopping. She will soon be off to explore all the sight and sounds of London and I’m sure she will have many tales to tell when she returns home to Sri Lanka. Keshala has worked as a student coordinator for SLMUN Project (Sri Lanka Model United Nations Project) and plays a major role now in organizing and planning functions for the SLMUN. C.O.L.O.R. is so proud of Keshala and her continued accomplishments, she is an amazing young woman who is going to pay it forward and make a difference in the world. All of her accomplishments can be traced back to her hard work and the continued support from C.O.L.O.R. in her educational pursuits. Thank you C.O.L.O.R donors!
2011-
2010-
Getting her first computer! Thank you C.O.L.O.R. donor for the hardware donation and software! Keshala’s English is now very good and she communicates with ease. Many of her tutoring classes are now also in English language and her tutors are exceptional.
2008-
Keshala was very lucky to participate in this years model UN conference in Colombo. Her grades remain high and she is very involved in various student activities. Her English is now very good and she is continuing her studies at the British Council.
Keshala 2008 Model United Nations Organization Conference
2007-
Keshala has been in the program for the last 2 years and has made great achievements during that time. She is currently in the 7th grade and ranked number one her class. Keshala also gained acceptance, to the British Council where she has access to the best teachers in the country, a high tech computer lab, and modern library; she describes it as, “another world.” Though the British Council Keshala is able to earn certificates in English from Cambridge University in England, this is an opportunity few children have. Her high grades and hard work have also qualified her for a Sri Lankan Government Scholarship, she is one of 16,000 children to qualify for this award nationwide; if she continues this path she will be eligible for a free university education. Keshala hopes to one day receive a degree in Computer Engineering.
2006-
Keshala is doing very well, her grades are consistently high marks and she ranks 1st or 2nd in her class depending on the school term. She is very involved with activities in school including drama and badminton.
2005-
We first met Keshala and her family in early 2005, following the tsunami in Sri Lanka. We gave Keshala and a hand full of other children educational scholarships to help them afford school supplies, uniforms, and extra tutoring. Sri Lanka at that time was still engaged in a civil war; the economy and people were unprepared for a natural disaster of such magnitude. Keshala excelled in school despite the chaos in her country, but with a bit of assistance she really began to shine.
