ABOUT THE MILLENNIUM FELLOWSHIP - CLASS OF 2022
United Nations Academic Impact and MCN are proud to partner on the Millennium Fellowship. Over 31,000 young leaders on 2,400+ campuses across 140+ nations applied to join the Class of 2022. 200+ campuses worldwide (just 8%) were selected to host the 3,000+ Millennium Fellows.
UNITED NATIONS ACADEMIC IMPACT AND MCN PROUDLY PRESENT TESSA ANN KANJIRAMKUZHEY, A MILLENNIUM FELLOW FOR THE CLASS OF 2022.
Duke University | North Carolina, United States | Advancing SDG 5 & UNAI 4
" I am passionate about promoting women's education and health. Oftentimes, women's needs are disregraded, which leads to worsening health outcomes. I believe by providing women with the resources they need to thrive they can transform a community. I am where I am today because my family and community believed in me and supported me. I want to provide the same support for women around the world. "
Millennium Fellowship Project: Supporting Women's Action - SuWA
SuWA is a collaboration between students at the Kenan Institute and about 80 women from the locally resettled refugee community. Each Tuesday night, Duke women and refugee women from Afghanistan, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iran, Iraq, Mexico, Rwanda, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Vietnam work together to build better lives for themselves and their families. The adjustment to life after resettlement in Durham can be challenging for refugee women in particular: cultural and linguistic barriers are daily frustrations, and the obstacles to accessing quality health care, education, and employment can be daunting. SuWA works to empower refugee women through education (ELL, GED, TOEFL, and Citizenship Test Prep), small business development, and community-building in order to meet these challenges. The support, care, and mutual advocacy developed through the program inspired the name “SuWA”—an Iraqi Arabic term for “togetherness” whose English transliteration is also the acronym for Supporting Women’s Action.
About the Millennium Fellow
Tessa Kanjiramkuzhey is a senior at Duke University located in Durham, NC, USA. She is passionate about advancing geriatric care and women’s health. As a Biology major with minors in Medical Sociology and Chemistry, she understands how promoting women’s education and providing end of life care and comfort can positively impact a community. For several years, she has organized SuWa, a program that works to help refugee and immigrant women assimilate and find support in the United States. She has also actively volunteered and formed life-long connections with elderly residents at local nursing homes through the program Adopt-a-Grandparent. After graduation, Tessa hopes to continue this mission by working as an EMT and volunteering at World Relief Durham before applying to medical school.
