Student Ambassadors 2023–24

Student Ambassadors serve as a critical link between News Decoder and their school. They promote our program on campus, help organize webinars and workshops and strengthen student and faculty engagement.

 

 

African Leadership Academy (South Africa)

Kingsley Onyedikachi Aaron Onuigbo

Kingsley Onyedikachi Aaron-Onuigbo is a Nigerian, second-year student at the African Leadership Academy. He reads a lot of African history, specifically the relationship of Gender and Sexuality in pre-colonial west African communities. In his free time, he enjoys badminton and reading and writing history fiction.

ALA Vuyisile Magagula
Vuyisile Bawinile Magagula is a second-year student at the African Leadership Academy. From the Kingdom of eSwatini, she has a passion for tennis and reading science fiction. Her plans for the future include a career in medicine and making quality healthcare accessible to all Africans.
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Maria Kadijah Samai  

Avicenne Private Business School (Tunisia)

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Ahed Smiaai is a master’s degree student at Avicenne Private Business School in Tunisia, pursuing Digital Marketing and Communication.

The European School Brussels II (Belgium)

beatrise prince

Beatrise Prince is a year six Latvian student at the European School of Brussels II. She is a part of the Pupils’ Committee and the Climate Academy. In her free time, she enjoys playing piano, drums and volleyball. She loves to problem solve and engage herself in multiple different activities. In the future she wishes to become an engineer.

 

Marta Timofejeva

Marta E. Timofejeva is a sixth-year Latvian student at the European School of Brussels II. She’s a part of the Students’ Committee in hopes of making her school the best it can be. She’s also in the Climate Academy. In her free time, she draws, plays the guitar and reads. She loves all things with animals and is especially interested in sharks. She adores biology and hopes to become a biochemist in the future.

The European School of Bergen (Netherlands)

Aderyn G. McCurdy-Luksch<br />

Aderyn G. McCurdy-Luksch is a year six student at the European School of Bergen. She goes scuba diving and reads in her free time. Aderyn is very passionate in the fields of sustainability and natural sciences. She enjoyes problem solving, building new skillsets and getting to know different viewpoints and perspectives. She is pursuing the goal of becoming a future marine biologist.

Hugo Laanen

Hugo Laanen is a Dutch student at the European School of Bergen in the Netherlands. In his free time he likes to procrastinate, help around in his school and hang out with friends. He has excellent problem solving skills and a great analytical mind. He loves to meet new people and broaden his knowledge about how our world works.

Gimnasio Los Caobos (Colombia)

Sara Martinez

Sara Lucía Martínez is 16 years old and is currently in grade 11 at Gimnasio Los Caobos, where she’s been studying for two years. She likes to practice taekwondo, and will hopefully soon get her red belt. She also likes to practice cheerleading and is the cheer captain at her school.

Paulina Velasco

Paulina Velasco is 16 years old and currently in grade 11. She has been a student at Gimnasio Los Caobos for two years. She likes to draw and dance.

Tomas Aragon Montero

Tomás Aragón Montero is 16 years old and studies at Gimnasio Los Caobos School in Colombia. He likes sports and is good at soccer and tennis. He is also very passionate about music and can play several instruments such as drums, piano, violin, clarinet, among others.

Nicolas Canon

Nicolas Cañón is 17 years old and goes to school at Gimnasio Los Cabos. He is currently in grade 11, and has gone to Gimnasio for seven years in total. He likes to go to the gym and focuses on being a better person every day.

María Villegas

María Villegas is 17 years old and studies at Gimnasio Los Caobos in Bogota, Colombia. Her favorite hobby is to draw and design buildings. She wants to study architecture. She knows how to play the guitar and loves artistic make-up.

Greens Farms Academy (United States)

The Hewitt School (United States)

Goldie Zarabi

Goldie Zarabi is a third-year student at The Hewitt School in New York City. She possesses a fervent enthusiasm for linguistics which she one day hopes to pursue. In her leisure time, Goldie actively participates in her school’s tennis and basketball teams and is a member of Hewitt’s debate team.

RachelRoth

Rachel Roth is a student at The Hewitt School in New York City. She is head of the Psychology Club and a member of the Business Club, the Cultural Awareness Club and the Debate Club. Outside of school, she plays tennis and competes in U.S. Tennis Association tournaments.

Indiana University (United States)

Braden Holt

Braden Holt is pursuing a Master’s in International Affairs student at Indiana University, focusing on international security and nuclear non-proliferation. He has a multimedia background as a musician and videographer and recently completed a summer research associate position at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory studying nuclear safeguards.

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Cooper Kleinmaier

Kepler (Rwanda)

Nadege Uwayezu
Nadege Uwayezu is from Kigali, Rwanda, pursuing an Associate of Science in General Studies at Kepler. Her extracurricular activities include writing, performing poetry, theater, singing, knitting, hiking and traveling. Her plans for the future include growing her career as an author and pursuing further studies in literature and creative writing.
Kepler InesAtosha
Ines Rachel Atosha is from Kigali, Rwanda, pursuing her a Bachelor’s Degree at Southern New Hampshire University under the Kepler program. She enjoys debating, reading and writing short stories. She likes to express herself through drawing and painting.

La Jolla Country Day School (United States)

Realgymnasium Rämibühl (Switzerland)

 

Emily Bayevsky

Emily Bayevsky is Dutch and American and currently goes to the Realgymnasium Rämibühl in Zurich. She loves writing and learning languages. In the future, she hopes to reach fluency in all six languages she currently speaks/studies. Outside of school, she spends most of her hours at the pool as a competitive swimmer.

 

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Hannah Eitel is a 15-year old student at Realgymnasium Rämibühl located in the centre of Zurich. She has been in Switzerland since 2018 and previously lived in China and Germany. As her hobby she goes to football training three times a week, does athletics, skis and plays the piano. Hannah shows great motivation towards the topics of law and politics and would like to pursue this career path in the future. She always tries to see the best in people and keeps a positive, cheerful mindset.

St. Andrews (United States)

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Manav Singh 

School Year Abroad France

Collier McKinnon

Collier McKinnon is from Atlanta in the U.S. state of Georgia. She goes to The Westminster Schools and is spending her third year of high school abroad in Rennes, France. In the United States, she was head of Women’s Empowerment and Leadership, a club that recruited female entrepreneurs in her community to talk to the members of the club. Collier aims to bring the same energy to News Decoder this year.

 
Stella McNab

Stella McNab is from the U.S. state of Texas and is in her third year of high school at School Year Abroad France. Her home school is St. Paul’s School where she enjoys studying the humanities and writing for her school’s newspaper. She enjoys running, writing and meeting new people. She is interested in pursuing a career in journalism or international relations in the future.

Hannah Horner

Hannah Horner is currently a third year high school student at SYA France. A New Jersey native, Horner attends school at Deerfield Academy in Massachusetts. She is secretary chair for the Malala Fund at DA, a member of the NJCTS Youth Council and a published TedX speaker. In her free time she enjoys dancing and choreographing, as well as acting and singing with her a cappella group. In the future Horner hopes to achieve fluency in at least four languages and create a career in international relations.

Leia Neilson

Leia Neilson is from the U.S. state of Maryland and is spending her third year of high school studying at School Year Abroad France. Her home high school is Sidwell Friends. Her favorite subjects are English and History. Out of school, she enjoys reading, playing guitar and rowing. In the future, she would like to work in a field related to public policy and urban planning.

 

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Anne Moghtader

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Mimi Wood

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Aerin Chough

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Micaela Lopez

School Year Abroad Italy

Aoife Flanagan
Aoife Flanagan is from Ridgefield in the U.S. state of Connecticut. She goes to Hopkins School in New Haven, and is studying abroad at SYA Italy for her third year of high school. Outside of school, she enjoys reading, journaling, playing soccer, skiing, volunteering and tutoring.
 

School Year Abroad Spain

Joshua Glazer

Joshua Glazer is a New Yorker through and through, and is spending the fall semester of his third year of high school abroad at SYA Spain. As a founding member of Avenues: The World School in New York, he has grown up speaking both Spanish and English in the classroom, allowing him to gain fluency in both. At home, he is involved in an International Student Council club, he is an experienced ambassador for Avenues and has a passion for history and current affairs.

Noah Gomes

Noah Gomes is from Weymouth in the U.S. state of Massachusetts and goes to school at Milton Academy. He is studying abroad at SYA Spain for his third year of high school. He loves to play sports, specifically soccer. He is also a musician, and plays the violin and piano. He loves history. Back in the United States, he gives tours at the Massachusetts State House, and is also a part of the African Students Association at his home school. He is not sure what he wants to pursue in his future career yet, but is currently interested in business and history.

SOS-Hermann Gmeiner International College (Ghana)

Sarah Bedele

Sarah Bedele is a student at SOS-HGIC in Accra, Ghana. She participates in Model United Nations and sings in the school choir. Through News Decoder, she hopes to bring global issues that affect her generation to the attention of her peers. She enjoys reading National Geographic and TIME magazines.

Isaac Kimathi

Isaac Kimathi is a third-year student at SOS-HGIC. He is of Kenyan nationality. He enjoys theatre performances and music. He would like to pursue medicine in future.

Nana Asumang

Nana Osafoaa Asumang is in her third year at SOS-Herman Gmeiner International College in Ghana. Her favourite subjects are Economics and Mathematics. In her free time she loves to relax with friends or play sports. She hopes to study economics further and become an entrepreneur.

The Tatnall School

Morgan Noel

Morgan Noel is a second-year student at The Tatnall School in the United States. Their favorite subjects are Biology, English and Latin, and they enjoy teaching, both as a volunteer tutor and as an employed assistant teaching science, engineering and art.

TATNALL Darian Harris

Darian Harris is a student at The Tatnall School and is from the U.S. state of Delaware. She is fascinated by learning new languages and is learning to speak French. She is keenly interested in Biology and Chemistry, and would like to become a doctor. Harris loves track and field and is one of the top runners in the state of Delaware for the 300 and 400 hurdles as well as the 400-meter dash. She is an active member of the Black Student Union Club at her school.

The Thacher School (United States)

Tenzing Lama

Tenzing Lama is Nepali-American from New York, in her second year of high school. She loves playing basketball and tennis, and is also currently learning to play the drums! She hopes to have a career in computer science and make the topic more accessible to females in her Nepali community.

Ada Hornung

Ada Hornung is currently a second-year student at The Thacher School. She is from Nebraska but grew up in Hong Kong. She enjoys riding horses, playing tennis and reading in her free time. Academically speaking, Hornung is very engaged and specifically enjoys her History and Chinese classes. Though Hornung is only a second-year student, she firmly believes that a career in Law or Diplomatic Relations will be in her future.

Ama Okigbo

Ama Okigbo is a Nigerian-American third-year student at The Thacher School in California. She is passionate about social change, particularly about gender. She is part of the volleyball and track team. She enjoys journaling, crocheting and listening to music. Ama aspires to study business and promote Girls Across Borders, her online platform that connects girls to engage, learn and empower them for a societal impact.

Transylvania College (Romania)

AnaisPopovici

Anaïs Popovici is a student in Year 11 at Transylvania College from Romania. She wants to pursue a career in International Relations and Law. She is president of Transylvania Insights, a student-led newspaper that focuses on bringing awareness towards social, political, environmental topics and more.

Maia Hermann

Maia Hermann is in her second year of high school at Transylvania College in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. She is interested in art and philosophy. She studies art at her school and aspires to have a career in this field, as well as to develop her writing skills. She is also passionate about studying sociology and human behaviour in society.

 

Maria Dejeu

Maria Dejeu is in her second year of high school at Transylvania College in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. She is interested in literature, philosophy and foreign languages. During her free time, she enjoys listening to music, writing, participating in MUNs and exploring the world of martial arts. She is the vice president of the school’s newspaper and loves to find out more about international relations. In the future, Maria hopes to follow a journalism career and discover more about how societies function.

 

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