Charlry Kamara is a recent graduate of Leuzinger High School and has already made leaps and bounds towards to her career in healthcare. Kamara founded the Health Outreach Club, represented the 2024 class in the Culinary Career Academy Club, and served as president of the Black Student Union where she coordinated meetings, events, fundraisers, and guest speakers. Before completing her senior year, Kamara won a $10,000 Milken Scholarship that will go towards her studies at Emory University where she will study nursing and global health this fall.
The Milken Scholars Program is a joint initiative of the Milken Family Foundation and the Milken Institute founded in 1989, by Michael and Lori Milken. In 2024, the Milken Scholars Program celebrated 35 years of honoring exceptional young people who have demonstrated the potential to make a profound difference in the world. Kamara was one out of eight winners in Los Angeles County. Scholars are chosen based on distinguished academic performance, school and community service, leadership, and evidence of having overcome personal and social obstacles. Milken Scholars receive financial assistance and a strong support system that lasts over time.
“I was nominated for the Milken Scholarship; the application was sent to our counselors, and I was nominated by our BSU advisor Ms. Parsons. She’s an amazing person, she’s a big support system for students. Within the last 15 years, no one from my school has gotten the scholarship and I am the only person from my entire graduating class to receive it. I completed the first and second rounds of applications and interviews. I was authentic in telling my story and sharing my goals, months went by and a received a Zoom call from the program representatives telling me I won. In that moment I was in shock and I’m so grateful for the opportunity to show and prove my potential.”
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After her mother sent for her at the age of nine from West Africa, Kamara moved to America to participate in the many educational benefits the states have to offer. She credits her mother as her main inspiration for her passion and commitment to healthcare.
“I was born in Sierra Lione, a small country in West Africa, all my family is from there. My mom left for the states when I was two years old, so I grew up with my dad’s side of the family and when I was nine, she came back for me and took me to the states to live with her. I didn’t expect to be in the U.S. and coming here there were challenges like language barriers, microaggressions, and adjusting to everyday life, but overtime and when I got to high school, and got involved in programs and extracurriculars, I started to feel like I belonged here. The U.S. has granted me a lot of opportunities through education and social interactions like the Milken Scholarship Program. Having my mom with me to support me along the way along with friends, advisors, and counselors, it helped make things a little bit easier as I adjust to each milestone.”
In addition to being an AP Scholar with Honors, Thrive Scholar, and Gear Up Scholar, Kamara graduated from Leuzinger with the Superintendent’s Certificate of Excellence. Furthering her positive influence academically and in her community, she actively engaged in the Tena Health Organization as a CARE student chapter leader, where she helped assemble care kits for the unhoused.
“While I was in high school, I was involved in a lot of things. I was part of Volunteers of America, which is a program that serves low-income, first-generation students going to college, and through that program I was exposed to a lot of different things specifically more public health work. I volunteered with TENA Health, a non-profit organization that assists the local community with resources through the Health Outreach initiative focusing on public health and bringing awareness to the disparities that affect people of color. Every month we would cover specific topics like cancer, women’s health, and have cub meetings where we would educate people with different facts and resources to support the community.”
Alongside her mother Kamara also dedicated herself to bringing quality education and healthcare to those in need. As an educational talent search student ambassador for Volunteers of America (VOA), the young professional participated in career workshops, summer academies, college visits, and college-readiness student panels. She was a leader in the Girls Build STEM group under VOA, helping other women preregister to vote and empowering them through the Generation Flo menstruation project, assembling necessity kits, and promoting reproductive health education.
“I’ve always wanted to go into the healthcare field specifically because my mom is a nurse and she’s been a CNA for the past ten years. She inspired me to go into that field and I want to serve people of color. Starting the groundwork with one-on-one care and then advancing to medical school will help me get to know people and polish my skills to become an obstetrician. I’m really inspired by what my mother has done, and people of color don’t always receive proper healthcare and I really want to change that narrative and represent those people as a face they can find familiar and comforting. Being president of the Black Student Union also allowed me to connect with people on a social and cultural level for four consecutive years.”
“Along with those clubs and taking STEM based classes like biology and anatomy, exploring those things developed into a passion. There’s so much you can do in nursing, and I feel like the flexibility that you get starting off as a nurse before medical school is so vast and that foundation assists in the bigger picture. The idea of becoming an obstetrician came from my love of children. I have a little brother and grew up babysitting, I fell in love with helping my mom when she was pregnant and really solidified my interest and my pursuit for my future.”
Outside of academics and career goals, Kamara likes to bake and in her spare time, she participates in the Academic Community of Excellence (ACE) program and the Educational Talent Search Group Mentoring Program at Loyola Marymount University, and as the Educational Talent Search and South Bay Workforce Investment Boards’ Invest in Yourself Career Development Program. Kamara is also active in her community and often volunteers at Hawthorne City Hall, Westchester Arts and Music Festival, House of Yahweh’s donation drive, and as a Mental Health Fair workshop moderator.
Kamara encourages other young students and professionals to believe in themselves and remember your worth as a person of color. She believes we belong in spaces that challenge us to be better leaders and of service to our community. “You’ve worked hard for this, you put in the effort. You belong here. Remembering your goals and values and why you’re pursuing something and knowing you can make an impact, for me healthcare is exactly that. This benefits me, my family, and my community. It might not make sense to other people, but if it makes sense to you, that’s all that matters.”
