Sandeep Singh

Sandeep is a student who has excelled in school and works hard to make his community and world a better place. What sets Sandeep apart from other students is that Sandeep moved to the United States from India just prior to his ninth grade year. He dealt with a tremendous language barrier which caused his grades to fall to "E" status in the beginning. This was an enormous discouragement to both Sandeep and his family. However, due to his family's support and the goals he had for himself, Sandeep found a way to rise above. He decided to use this challenge to better himself. For example, he started collaborating with other people, attending English classes at Sylvan Learning Center, attending online classes at the YMCA, and coming to school every day to get the best education he could. Sandeep also managed to get involved at school, joining teams and clubs such as the French Club, the Spanish Club, the Soccer Club, SADD, Science Olympiad, and Asset Committee. Sandeep credits his involvement with these activities and his volunteer experience to the improvement we saw in his English abilities. He has learned about language and cultural differences, his own personal time management, and excels in the traits of teamwork, cooperation, responsibility, care, and courage. Because of his hard work and dedication to his goals, he has raised his grades to above a 3.0 grade point average!

Sandeep has been doing volunteer work for over five years and has accumulated more than 2,000 hours. Sandeep volunteers every single day of his summer vacation at such places as the American Red Cross, S.A.F.E. place, V.A. Medical Center, and the Sikh Temple. Most recently, in the summer of 2006, he helped to fundraise $2,500 which was sent to India to help educate the homeless population. He has recycled 22,000 pounds of paper, newspaper, e-waste such as metals, and cardboard to help protect our environment, drainage system, and groundwater. Sandeep has helped to raise funds for the disaster victims of Hurricane Katrina and the Tsunami. Sandeep is currently helping with another project to raise funds for HIV/AIDS orphans in Africa.

Sandeep is striving to achieve a career in the medical field, exploring options such as dermatology and biomedical engineering. His proven record of setting goals for himself and working hard to achieve them leads me to believe that he will be a success in any chosen field that is lucky enough to obtain such a hard-working and dedicated person.