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Reshma Tharani, 21, is part of a new breed of community college student
Angel Kelchev
“Using the skills and knowledge that an M.B.A. program develops would help me create opportunities for the youth in Bulgaria that I did not find until after immigrating to the US in 2001.”
- Program: 2008 Graduate Scholarship Recipient
- Hometown: Pazardjik, Bulgaria
- Community College: Bellevue Community College
- Four-year College or University: Stanford University
- Graduate School: Stanford University
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Biography
PROFILE: In 2000, Angel Kelchev graduated from high school in his native Bulgaria and decided to apply for the US-sponsored green card lottery. He filled out the documents, put the papers in front of his parents, and asked them to sign. Although they won the green card lottery, leaving home was not an easy decision. When Angel’s family arrived here in 2001, only Angel and his sister spoke some English, and they all had to support themselves by working as night janitors in high-rise office buildings.
Six years later, after graduating with honors in economics from Stanford University, Angel works in the same kinds of offices that he used to clean. During the past year, he also initiated two $25,000 service projects in his Bulgarian hometown. After equipping two high schools and the library with computer labs, he convinced local businesses to subsidize computer training and foreign language classes for adults. He has also completed projects in India and is currently working on a $400,000 country-wide disabilities awareness campaign in Nepal and on yet another project to bring resources to the Children’s Library in his hometown. “I want to ensure that the young people in Bulgaria today will receive the opportunities they need to be competitive and successful on a global scale.”
INSPIRATION: Angel credits his parents with inspiring him every step of the way. “Coming from a country where opportunities are scarce, and ways to build a career without completely abandoning one’s core values are virtually non-existent, my ambition was to work hard and support my parents.”
ASPIRATION: Upon earning his M.B.A., Angel plans to create world-class, self-sustaining educational programs in Bulgaria and fully apply his leadership and entrepreneurship skills.
MAKING A DIFFERENCE: Angel has led service projects in India, Nepal, Bulgaria, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Panama and the US, and has been instrumental in raising cumulative funds in excess of $1,000,000.
ACCOLADES: Angel is the youngest member in the history of the San Francisco Rotary Club. In 2005-06, he earned the Rotaract Presidential Citation for Service Above Self. In 2004, he was the first student recipient of the Leadership Award of Bellevue Community College.
INTERESTING FACT: Angel is an avid squash player and loves the films of Pixar.
Other Scholars Like Angel
Heather Lewis
Undergraduate Transfer Scholar
Stanford University
Jose Medina
Graduate Scholar
Georgia Institute of Technology
Agata Clevenger
Graduate Scholar
Villanova University
Catherine Reyes
Graduate Scholar
Harvard University