Brazil Student Profiles
We are extremely proud of their great achievements and successes. Below are the profiles of some of our Brazilian students.
Julio Freitas
Rocky Mountain College '08
Julio Freitas is from Belo Horizonte, Brazil. He always wanted to pursue an academic education in America, but coming from a disadvantaged family, that dream seemed impossible for him. However, the winds blew a new direction when he got to know about USAP. He had been going to college for two years in Brazil, which enabled him to transfer to Rocky Mountain College as a junior in Business Major. Julio is sponsored partially by the College itself and also by MDUR Resources, Inc., giving him a full scholarship. During College, Julio works in the Dining Service. His other current job positions include work study in the Development Office, permanent writer for the College newspaper and due to his excellent academic performance, a gig as an accounting tutor.
For the future, Julio intends to work in the accounting department of an international company and in the long run, he intends to pursue a degree in communications so that he can work on TV, which is his dream field.
Deborah Rufino
Smith College '09
Deborah transferred to Smith College in 2006. She will graduate in January 2009 with a major in Government and a minor in International Relations. Before she begun as a USAP student, Deborah dos Santos was one of 20 Brazilian youth selected by the American Embassy in Brazil to participate of the Youth Ambassadors Program in 2005. Last summer she took an internship at the Fulbright Commission in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. And this summer she will be back to her hometown to do research with a local NGO on issues of youth violence. Back to Smith for her senior year, Deborah is busy working as a House Community Adviser; helping out students that are learning Portuguese; planning a Brazilian traditional dance presentation for Smith's Rhythm Nations; and writing her honor thesis.
Glauber Mosqueira
University of Pennsylvania '10
Glauber Mosqueira is a 2010 Mechanical Engineering undergraduate at the University of Pennsylvania. He is currently a member of UPenn's Formula SAE team, in which an open-wheel car is fully designed and built by students. His main project at the moment is an independent study in which he is making a finite element analysis of a limited-slip differential. He has also been one of the winners for JPMorgan's 2007/08 FantasyFutures competition, and is a member of the Partners of the Americas Pennsylvania/ Bahia committee in Philadelphia. His current work is a TA position for a Biochemistry course.
Glauber had previous cultural experiences in the US through the 2004 Youth Ambassadors Program, from the American Embassy in Brasília, and through the 2006 YSLI Camp from the National Science Foundation. He believes that only education and a subsequent technological advance are capable of providing a nation with the necessary support for development, and those are the values he will take to Brazil from his experiences in the US.
Alan Santinele Martino
St Lawrence University '11
Awarded with a full scholarship, Alan is a current freshman at St Lawrence University in upstate New York where he graduates in May of 2011. Alan comes from Praia Grande, a city in the coast of Sao Paulo State in Brazil.
This young man has been involved in two community services including visits to a local nursing home and mentoring a child from a Native American reservation. He has also been selected to participate in a project of the university in which he will lead deliberative dialogs on campus throughout the spring and the fall semesters. In the summer of 2008, Alan is going to join Fulbright Commission and the U.S. Embassy in Brazil for an internship that will introduce him counseling experiences and social aspects in Brazil.
His background and academic progress are certainly leading him to a sociology major with education as a minor. He believes that education is a powerful tool to assist people to become critical thinkers and have they included into society. He’s particularly interested about the inclusion of people with disabilities in regular schools as he has a brother with cerebral who is currently attending a regular public school in his hometown. Working as a professor or a diplomat are part of his career plans as his dream is to make a difference in his country by offering opportunity for other people to have their voices heard and respected.
Mayara Silva
Mount Holyoke College '11
"Once you've set your goals, go for them! No matter what barriers you might find", says Mayara Silva, a rising junior, Economics and Mathematics special major at Mount Holyoke College. Restlessly committed to the academics, and with an ineffable will to make real changes in this world, Mayara has excelled her studies in Mount Holyoke, being awarded the Gina Jacobsen Prize in Mathematics, the Sylvia Shrek '39 Hubbell Memorial Award for Excellence in French, and the merit-based $2,400 Datatel Scholars Foundation Scholarship the 2008/09 academic year. She has also been awarded the Laurel Fellowship, which will fund her study abroad program at the Institute of Political Studies of Paris, in the Spring of 2010.
Beyond academics, Mayara has reinforced her commitment to social change since she got to Mount Holyoke, first being an active member of the Intergroup Dialogue project on race and class, and more recently by joining CAUSE – Creating Awareness for Unity and Social Equality, a student organization with which she went to Honduras in the Spring of 2009 to do volunteer work. Besides working at a farm and teaching chess to students at the community of Guaimaca, Mayara gave math classes to 7th and 8th graders and helped them with their struggles in the subject after class.
Looking into the future, Mayara intends to earn a Ph.D. in Economics to advance research in development alternatives, but her life goals are beyond the academic world: "If research in development is one of my passions, no doubt I want to commit to it with more years of study; but the one thing I am certain about is that I want to run for public office at some point in my life, hopefully not too far from now. There's so much to be done back home that I refuse to just sit down and wait until things get better; I need and want to be an active player."
Bruno Carlesso Betat
University of Chicago '11
Born and raised in the city of Porto Alegre, in the south of Brazil, Bruno has seen a dream come true as he was admitted to the competitive and reputable University of Chicago last year, on a full-ride scholarship. He is currently a freshman, and intends to graduate in International Studies, with a possible minor in Latin American Studies, in 2011.
In 2006, he was chosen through a nation-wide selection process to be one of the 25 participants of the American Embassy-sponsored Youth Ambassadors Program. After that, the USAP proved to be a life-changing opportunity, "I regard the opportunity I was given as an outcome of the way I have led my life towards the direction of education". Bruno faces education and volunteer work as a way to have a positive impact on the reality of his country, which is his main future goal.
Back in Brazil, Bruno has never let his financial limitations stop him from pursuing his objectives and making a difference in his community. He used to work on a project that promotes the inclusion of children with multiple disabilities in the school environment. Also, as an active member of the NGO Partners of the Americas, he engaged in educational projects for his local community.
While still in his first year in college, Bruno has lots of plans for the future. His dream is to follow the path of International Relations, maybe towards diplomacy, as he views global understanding and multi-cultural interaction as a powerful tool to make a change in our world.
Agatha Oliveira
University of Pennsylvania '12
Agatha is from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She always wanted to pursue her studies in the United States but she thought at first that she would not stand a chance coming from an underprivileged family in Rio. She has always dedicated herself to studying and was able to pass on to a very competitive Federal high school in Rio. Agatha's grades were so strong that she also received a scholarship from a magnet school to prepare her for the College Entrance Examination. Agatha would go to her regular school from 7am to 1pm and to the magnet school from 2pm to 8pm, including Saturdays. Her dream was to study engineering and during all these years. She managed to study English on her own and at school, even though the level of English taught at public schools in Brazil is basic. Nothing stopped Agatha from her thirst of knowlege. Now, she is going to make her dream come true. She has been accepted to start at the University of Pennsylvania in August 2008 to major in Engineering!
João Palacio Filho
Berea College '12
João was born in Ceara, a northeastern state in Brazil. Son of an elementary school teacher and a salesman, he never let his financial difficulties hold him back from dreaming and pursuing his goals. When João was 11, he entered the Military School of Fortaleza after taking tests, and attended it until his graduation from high school in 2006. João has always been a dedicated student and gotten good grades. During high school, he started volunteer work as an English Teacher at an underprivileged public school in his city.
João was selected to be one of the 25 Brazilian Youth Ambassadors in 2006, a program that is carried out by the US Embassy in Brazil. He could represent his country abroad, and such an experience made him sure of the professional field he would like to follow. João plans to work for an international company and deal with different interests and issues. The OG program has been the chance for him to fulfill his career plans. He has been admitted to Berea College and he believes he can get excellent qualifications by studying abroad and then do a lot for his country upon graduation.
Rebecca Carvalho
Lawrence University OR Ithaca College '12
Rebecca Carvalho is a student from Recife – PE, Brazil. As a member of the 2007 cohort of the Youth Ambassadors Program, she had the chance to give speeches about her country in the United States; has attended meetings with regional and national American leaders; and has stayed for a week with a family from Charlotte, North Carolina. Rebecca has always embraced her principles concerning to the strengthening of the friendship links between two peoples as stated in her speech at the American Chamber of Commerce – SP, as the spokesperson of the group.
Led by her strong desire of becoming a war correspondent, Rebecca will continue her academic career in the U.S. in the fall. She was accepted into Lawrence University and Ithaca College to keep her studies on Journalism, which is more than her professional choice – but her choice of life. A member of Partners of the America, she sees the chance to transfer to one of these academic institutions as a great step toward her plans of being able to give voice, through her writing ability, to all the speechless people around the world, all the ones that become voiceless because of a sort of everyday tragedies.
Lilian Alves
Mount Holyoke College '12
Determination is a key word for Lilian. Raised in Tefé, a small town in Amazonas, North of Brazil, she always wanted to pursue big things despite the obstacles in her life. As an OG, she had a once-in-a-life-time opportunity to fly even higher and was admitted as a transfer student to Mount Holyoke College where she intends to major in International Relations.
"This will be a chance to not only improve myself but also to contribute for my country's development."
In 2008, Lilian was one of the eighteen students selected to be part of the first Brazilian edition of the Study in United States Institute for Student Leaders program, created by the US Department of State. She spent five weeks at University of Tennessee, where she further developed her academic and leadership skills. She participated in 2006 edition of the Youth Ambassadors program from the American Embassy.
Lilian is very conscious about her role in society and believes in giving back to her community. She has been involved in several volunteer projects and is currently part of the Justiça Itinerante (Itinerant Justice) from the Federal Justice, which travels to country towns of Amazonas giving legal assistance to local people.
Níkolas Francisco Iubel
Stanford University '12
Commitment is a defining word when it comes to describe Níkolas's academic path. From Math Olympics to dance classes to research on electronic voting machine, Níkolas has been a dynamic student since the very beginning of his education. This talented young man comes from Curitiba, Paraná state, the largest city in Southern Brazil. After a demanding Entrance Examination, Níkolas was approved to study at the Curitiba’s Military School, a top school in the country. He was a highlight during all the seven years he studied there. When he was 12, he was chosen to take part in a nationwide TV program called "Grade A Student". Some years later, he represented his state in the Youth Ambassadors program sponsored by the US Embassy in Brazil.
Due to his outstanding performance at military school, Níkolas earned the right to appear on the school's chart of honor. In half a century the school has been in existence, he was just the fourth student who was given such an honor, the highest ever given to a student at the school. He saw his lifetime efforts rewarded when he was offered a full-ride scholarship at one of the best universities in the world, the prestigious Stanford University.
Before he was offered a scholarship at Stanford, Níkolas attended the two best colleges of Paraná State concurrently and was able to accomplish outstanding grades at both. At the same time, he volunteered his time and energy to social projects in his community. However, his dream was to pursue the best academic experience available worldwide. His willingness to push the limits of knowledge perfectly matched the entrepreneurial spirit of Stanford University, where he intends to double major in Engineering and Mathematics, with some possible minors.
After graduating, Níkolas is going to follow an academic career, working as both a professor and researcher, since he truly believes in the importance of education as a way to improve people's quality of life. His Stanford experience begins in the Fall of 2008.