Discus Award Winner
Winners Gallery
PHOTOS
Tsion Dessie
12th Grade, MD
ATTRIBUTES
Work
I have always loved helping people and seeing their satisfaction have been the greatest gifts of all. What a great place to be able to help people than the hospital. I intern as a Certified nursing assistant (CNA) at Holy Cross Hospital, one of the largest hospitals in the state of Maryland. I intern in their Coronary care unit which is one of the busiest and also most critical units in the hospital. Of the services that I provide include giving bed baths to patients when necessary, feeding, repositioning patients every 2 hours, checking blood glucose and etc. I have learned a lot from all the nurses including the intensivist and cardiologists. I got the chance to challenge myself and put myself out there in many situations which has changed my life forever.
Academics
I have always liked to challenge myself in school by taking advanced courses. I have kept a high GPA throughout all of my high school years. Even though English is not my first language and I came to this country 4 years ago, I currently take AP literature and composition. I was chosen to be part of the 32 students that was accepted to take the Medical Careers course. This course enabled me to become a Certified Nursing Assistant in the state of Maryland and also gave me the chance to get a college credit for the Medical Terminology course. I received several achievement awards such as a Certificate of Academic and Clinical Excellence, STAR Scholarship Foundation Certificate of Merit (3 years), AAFAE Outstanding Academic Achievement (3 years), and Honor Roll (every semester).
Community Service
One of the greatest feelings in the world is doing something not only for yourself but for your community as a whole. I am the chair-person in my school's Key Club and I am responsible for purchasing all the items needed to make bag lunches for our local homeless shelters. We gather around and pack sandwiches, fruit snacks, and rice krispie treats which is then delivered to the shelters. We also make blankets for veterans and collected toys for this Christmas for kids who need it. Other than key club I organized bake sales for a local elementary school to help fund for carnivals and other activities.
