Davies student lands prestigious Brown scholarship

LINCOLN – Liliana Fajardo, a sophomore Health Careers major at the William M. Davies, Jr. Career & Technical High School, had mixed emotions when she discovered she was eligible to register for the prestigious Summer at Brown Scholarship Program, an immersive, threeweek opportunity for high school students to experience college life by taking classes with and living among peers from all over the globe.

It truly is an introduction to attending college, except the $6,000-plus price tag will have already been paid for.

“I took part in the Pathways at Brown program, which took place from every Saturday from Sept. 27 through Dec. 6, and I learned a lot more about health careers, what I might want to study in

college,” she said. “It also explained more about biology, physiology, psychology and more.

“Everyone who took part in Pathways was eligible to apply for Summer at Brown, but I was hesitant because it was a three-week program where I’d be staying in a dorm at Brown, and I was worried if it would be too overwhelming.

“I also wasn’t sure if Health Careers was the career path I wanted to follow,” she added. “The more I thought about it, though, my experiences in Pathways and the chance for the Summer at Brown scholarship, that’s when I realized there were multiple opportunities out there for me within that field.”

Fajardo, a Central Falls resident, applied for it in early March and was accepted – in fact, she was one of only three statewide to be selected to spend three straight weeks (between June 15-July 25) immersed in Health Careers education – but now she claims she’s a little worried about the prospect of being away from home for the first time.

“Oh, I’m not nervous; I’m extremely nervous,” she said. “I know what it is – it’s fear of the unknown,” she said. “I don’t know what it’s going to be like. It’s going to be a new experience, so I’m excited about that. I will say that along with being nervous, I know this experience is going to result in something that will better my future.

“It’s nerve-wracking, but it also makes me feel like, ‘I can’t believe it! Me?’ It’s thrilling because I know there’s something really cool out there for me.”

According to the Summer at Brown web site, the program allows high school kids to explore new paths and connect with different ways of thinking, seeing and doing. Students are allowed to choose from more than 230 non-credit courses reflecting the wide range of Brown’s Open Curriculum that will challenge them with new perspectives on how to learn, work and live.

“With so many students from different locations, backgrounds and interests, studying at Summer at Brown, you’ll join a community of peers who bring broad and deep perspectives on living and learning together,” it said. “Outside of class, you’ll participate in workshops, activities and events – scheduled from morning to night – that inform, engage and entertain.

“Along the way, you’ll make new friends from around the world and learn to live independently and responsibly – skills that will prepare you well for life in college and long after.

“Summer at Brown provides the opportunity to embrace the challenge of college-level academics without the pressure of formal grades and credit, in classes taught by instructors just as interested in your learning as you are, alongside students just as engaged as you.”

All students who successfully complete their course will receive a digital certificate of completion.

“Being selected meant a lot to me; it’s made a huge impact on how I look at my future career,” said Fajardo, who wants to pursue becoming a criminal psychologist. “At first I thought, ‘What? Me’ People were asking me, ‘How’d you do it?’ and to be honest, I don’t know how. I was thinking, ‘How am I capable of learning so much when I’m only a sophomore?’

“But I’m looking forward to it.”

She admitted that this wasn’t always her career interest. When she was nine, 10 and 11, she wanted to chase business, but then, as a young teen, she became interested in people’s emotions and how they handled their mental health.

She also said she’s experienced anxiety attacks and has friends who have had the same, and would like to learn more about them, why they occur.

“I’ve always considered myself very observant,” she said. “I’ll be walking down the street and look at people, wonder what they’re thinking and feeling. I also want to learn more about why criminals think and act the way they do.