More About Abeba
Abeba Kifle Niguse
Abeba is excited to go to high school because, “I will have as much space and time as I need to study and learn. I am excited to have access to the library and computer lab so I can access more reference materials. I am also looking forward to meeting lots of new students from different primary schools. I want to share ideas and experiences with them.”
Name: Abeba Kifle Niguse
What her name means in Tigrigna (local language): “Flower”
Gender: Female
Age: 14
Birthday: (DMY: 24/09/1989 EC)
Hometown: Adi Aitewelde
Former elementary school: Sesella Grade 1-8 Community School
Distance between hometown and nearest high school: 70 km
High school she is attending: Adigudom Senior Secondary School
Academic record: In Grade 8 Abeba was third in her class and she had an academic average of 77%.
Favorite subject(s): English
Extracurricular activities and leadership positions in Grade 8: HIV/AIDS Club member, classroom monitor, Student Parliament member, Library Club member, member of the Pedagogical Center Club, member of the Civics and Ethics Club, member of the Anti-Cheating Club.
Challenges encountered during elementary school: “I am the only girl in my family and so there are many responsibilities that I have at home. Our family has very little money so I often struggle to purchase notebooks or a pen when I need it.”
In 10 years Abeba wants to be a doctor because, “our community often suffers from basic health care problems which interrupts our community’s and country’s development. I want to be able to help these people so that they can help move our country forward."
Favorite quote: “Don’t leave your house for the day until you know what your vision is to make that day great.”
Role model: “I respect all the teachers in my school because they are full of knowledge and freely share it with us. They also take their free time on the weekends and holidays to give us tutorial classes so that we can understand the material better.”
Favorite celeb: Haile Gebreselassie
Hobbies and interests: playing volleyball, writing poems and short stories.
Family: “I have 11 people in my family – I have my mother, my father, two sisters and six brothers. I am the 6th child in my family but I will be the first to complete high school. My older brother dropped out after he failed his Grade 9 exams and neither of my parents have gone to school at all. My father works as a guard at the mill and also farms on our land, which is one hectare in size. We farm and harvest different cereals.”
Family’s skills for potential income generation activities: animal fattening, raising and selling chickens, beekeeping.
What her father, Kifle, thinks about her having the opportunity to go to high school: “I am very happy that Abeba has this opportunity. I have known for a long time that she wants to go to high school but I never knew how I could make it possible for her. This problem has now been overcome. She can go and I know that she will be successful.”
What her homeroom teacher, Kasa, is saying about her: “Abeba is a very clever student. I have taught her for four years and seen her develop in her confidence and understanding. She never misses a weekend tutorial class and is a role model for her peers both in her academics and in her leadership.”
