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Samragyee Dhakal

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Bold Points

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Nominee

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Finalist

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Winner

Bio

Hello! My name is Samragyee Dhakal, I am a junior in high school and I have various fields of interest. Since I was young I have always been a doodler. Art was my first love and is one of the hobbies I find to put color into my life. As I nurtured my talents and became more proficient in math and science, I found a new love in computer science. When I am coding projects, I stand on the shoulders of giants. Everything I use to make my project successful comes from the resilient people that came before me. Growing up in an immigrant household I have always valued education. My parents are both teachers who believe that there is more to learning than what can be taught in the classroom. I adopt their mindset and believe that life is a series of learning experiences we can use to better ourselves. I am passionate about diversity and equity in the workplace and strive to create a world where fairness and justice is the norm. In my community I am involved in many volunteer activities from tutoring to advocacy groups, I have yielded over 100 volunteer hours. My ultimate goal is to protect those who would need extra security on their data. Whether it be through a company or non-profit, I would like to provide a safe space for vulnerable people to access the internet without the interception of third-party entities so they can escape dangerous situations, pass vital information, or protect themselves from a cyber-attack.

Education

Northwood High School

High School
2020 - 2024
  • GPA:
    4

Miscellaneous

  • Desired degree level:

    Bachelor's degree program

  • Majors of interest:

    • Accounting and Computer Science
    • Computer and Information Sciences, General
    • Computer Science
  • Not planning to go to medical school
  • Career

    • Dream career field:

      Computer & Network Security

    • Dream career goals:

      protect those who would need extra security on their data.

    • Intern

      FDA
      2023 – Present1 year
    • Intern

      Brainwave Teen Psychology
      2022 – 20231 year
    • Intern

      TurnUp Activism
      2022 – 2022
    • Sales Person

      MCPS
      2022 – Present2 years

    Sports

    Tennis

    Varsity
    2018 – 20235 years

    Arts

    • Northwood Highschool

      Litrary Magazine
      2021 – Present
    • Northwood Mural Project

      Painting
      2021 – 2022

    Public services

    • Volunteering

      PeaceJam — Activist
      2021 – 2022
    • SSIMS- Helped in the Media Center — Assistant
      2017 – 2019
    • Advocacy

      Organizer
      2021 – 2022
    • Advocacy

      TurnUp Activism — Intern
      2022 – 2022
    • Volunteering

      National Honors Society — Tutor
      2022 – Present

    Future Interests

    Volunteering

    Philanthropy

    Entrepreneurship

    Future Leaders in Technology Scholarship - High School Award
    Winner
    I did not fall in love with computer science on our first date. When the IT technician at the 5th-grade career fair explained the components of a computer and how they all worked, I did not understand a single word he said. I was the kind of person that would paralyze by the, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" question. There were days when I was fascinated by crystal formations and I tried numerous times to grow them in my closet with sugar water. Then there were days I spent my afternoons painting, discovering new worlds that spilled from my brushes. I eventually figured I wanted to be an engineer because I could make almost anything that could do anything, including forming crystals and painting. I took a computer science class in high school for my technology credit. Our first lesson was examining the societal impacts of computers. At first, I did not give too much attention to the topic because it was the type of assignment I had done countless times before in other technology classes. However, in this lesson, I learned about issues such as the digital divide and censorship, which led to a discussion on how we could use our knowledge to alleviate these issues. Suddenly, I was intrigued by the prospect of a solution. Almost all of our conversations about computer science came back to a core issue: diversity. It is no surprise that women are underrepresented in STEM. What might be a surprise is that there are fewer women in computer science now than there were in the 1980s. This dip has a lot to do with little girls being discouraged from going into STEM. Conversations like these were what I was missing from my other classes. Finally, I fell for computer science because each problem required my knowledge and compassion to solve which sparked the resilience I needed to come up with a solution. Almost intuitively, I developed a flow. Lines of code became my colors, the keyboard my brush, and the monitor my canvas. Coding became my art, and art is my gateway to discovering new worlds. Currently, my little sister is just grasping the basics of math. I often worry that if her curiosity is left unnurtured, it will block her from pursuing a satisfying career. When I open my computer, she immediately becomes intrigued. "Ooo, what’s that?" she says. I pull up a stool next to my desk and feed her knowledge-hungry mind to the best of my ability. When I code, I focus on learning a new skill that can create an impact in her life. To learn about how programs use data and machine learning, I delved into two projects: a carbon data analyzer and a prediction model for lung cancer using linear regression. These projects drove me to research how computer science, particularly data, can benefit women beyond just breaking the glass ceiling. I am planning to expand this principle by pursuing computer science in college. A type of wearable technology or software that is an encrypted communication device can be a lifeline for people in hostile situations, such as abuse. An intelligent menstrual product dispenser can alert custodians when it is empty. Although the software used to predict domestic violence raises questions about its potential bias, diversified institutions, reliable data, and proper legal actions can help remedy the issue. With my education, I not only plan to leverage women with new software but also employ talented women into a space where they can advance their careers without patriarchal resistance. My presence might comfort a young girl, but my voice will certainly inspire her. All little sisters around the world deserve a society where their interests and needs are valued. When innovation is used as a weapon, we must reconstruct it to build a bridge to a brighter future—one that anyone can walk across.