More About Zufan
Zufan Haile Berhe
Zufan is excited to go to high school because, “I will be away from home so I won’t have as many responsibilities, which means I will have more time to study. I hope that my high school will be close to my new home so that I don’t have to walk so far. I am also looking forward to using a bigger library and the computers.”
Name: Zufan Haile Berhe
What her name means in Tigrigna (local language): “The seat of kings”
Gender: Female
Age: 13
Birthday: (DMY: 21/12/1990 EC)
Hometown: Adi Aweto
Former elementary school: Siheet Grade 1-8 Community School
Distance to closest high school: 28 km
High school she is attending: Adigudom Senior Secondary School
Academic record: Zufan was one of the top two students from Grade 3 to Grade 8. In Grade 8 she was at the top of her class with an academic average of 92.50%.
Favorite subject(s): Biology and Math
Extracurricular activities and leadership positions in Grade 8: Vice Chairperson of Sports Club, Vice Chairperson of Civics and Ethics Club, secretary of the Student Parliament, Anti-HIV/AIDS Club Chairperson, member of Science Lab Club, member of Art and Literature Club, Chairperson of Girls’ Club.
Challenges encountered during elementary school: “My father passed away when I was only 4 months old. When I grew up I often felt like I should drop out of school in order to support my mother at our home. I live far away from my school and have to walk 1.5 hours to get to school each day. It makes me tired so I sometimes have trouble focusing on my lessons but it also means that I have less time to study. When I was in Grade 6 my mother and stepfather thought I was officially an ‘adult’ so they told me that I must drop out of school. This is because as an adult they thought that I would be sexually assaulted along the long walk to school. I talked to them about it a lot and the next year they allowed me to come back to school.”
In 10 years Zufan wants to be a doctor because, “I have observed many mothers who become sick after they give birth to a child. I think that there must be some way to prevent this. I want to study and then come back to help the women in my community.”
Favorite quote: “Educating a girl is educating a community. Educating a community is educating a country.”
Role model: “My grandmother because when my stepfather tried to make me drop out of school she supported me. Because she is an elder and is respected my stepfather had to listen to her so I got to stay in school.”
Favorite celeb: Haile Gebreselassie – an Ethiopian runner.
Family: “I have five younger siblings but we do not share the same father since my mother remarried after my father died. My mother and my stepfather never went to school so I will truly be the first person in our family to go to high school. We have ¾ hectare piece of farmland, which we grow cereals on. We plow the land with the two cows and two oxen that we own.”
Family’s skills for potential income generation activities: animal fattening and trading, micro-irrigation to grow vegetables on leased land.
What her mother, Birho, thinks about her daughter having the opportunity to go to high school: “Before I was wondering if it was good for her to be in school because Zufan’s stepfather kept telling me that she should drop out. But now this opportunity makes me realize how important school is for her and also gives her the freedom to go because her stepfather will not have to pay for her to attend. No one can hold her back. I hope that she will be a role model of hard work and determination for the rest of my children, especially my daughters.”
What her homeroom teacher, Awet, is saying about her: “Zufan is an exemplary student. She is always attentive in class and does very well on her exams. She has many close friends which indicates her good nature. She is an active participant in all parts of school life. She is confident and shares her ideas openly with her peers. She has peacefully overcome the challenges in her life and has now been given the opportunity she hoped for.”
