Selfie time with Miss Africa Perth!

During an inspiring visit by former Ballajura Community College student Gladys Serugga, several Year 12 ATAR students were presented with enrichment scholarships to help them get the best possible outcome from their upcoming ATAR exams.

What made the visit more special is that Gladys raised the money for the scholarships herself, on her journey to becoming Miss Africa Perth 2018. As part of the ambassadorial program designed to instill confidence and pride in young African women, she created The Better Project and raised funds so that she could offer $1500 worth of scholarships to students from her former school.

Gladys graduated in 2013 and went on university to study architecture. She now has a Bachelor of Applied Science – Architectural Science.

“I studied my ATAR at Ballajura and I wanted to give back to the school that gave me such a great foundation,” Gladys said. “And I wanted to help more students from the African community go to university.

“My advice to these students is to enroll in a course they are passionate about, something they can see themselves doing in five years’ time.”

The enrichment scholarships, valued at $300 each, allow the students to take part in Academic Associates' Year 12 ATAR Enrichment Program held at UWA during the Term 3 school holidays.

“The scholarship provides 10 hours of valuable enrichment sessions, and being held at the university campus, it is also a chance to experience campus life,” Gladys said.

The small group of students were excited to meet Gladys and were very thankful for her generous and thoughtful contribution to their education, and were keen to talk to her about her experiences at university and in the Miss Africa Perth program.