Siyona is a rising senior in NJ who is interested in working against the development in inequities in healthcare, specifically in regards to women’s rights.
Entering high school, Siyona was accepted to the Model UN (MUN) team and argued as part of the Commission on the Status of Women, representing countries across the board and receiving one Best Delegate Award, two Outstanding Delegate awards, and two Honorable Mentions. Throughout her time on the MUN team, she began to understand different countries’ policies on women’s rights, the reasons for those policies, and how they worked together to develop a resolution. In addition to MUN, Siyona combined her knowledge of women’s issues with writing: she is a staff writer for the Princeton Foundation Blog and The Flow, Duke’s reproductive health magazine. She was also elected president of the womens’ empowerment group at her school, POWER, where she leads the organization of period packing drives, all-school presentations, and weekly meetings.
Siyona was also selected as youth volunteer at the Trinitas hospital, working in the ER, dialysis unit, and maternal health sector. Her volunteering experience inspired her to start her own organization, Rightfully Hers (RH), where multiple youth volunteers partner with different organizations to raise awareness about discrimination against women. The RH team then went on to raise enough money for over three hundred breastfeeding kits for underprivileged mothers in Elizabeth, NJ. They also hosted distribution events of those kits for three consecutive years (the fourth year is ongoing). Moreover, Siyona works with a rehabilitation center for abused teenage girls, called New Day, providing them with mental health outings, self-defense classes, and college counseling.
Even further, Siyona has found a way to combine one of her biggest passions, song composition, with her work in women’s empowerment. After writing a song titled Fighter Woman and sharing it at several venues/competitions, she was recognized by an organization called NJCAHT (The New Jersey Coalition Against Human Trafficking). She is now the only youth committee member accepted to NJACHT’s Education committee.
Siyona hopes to continue working in various aspects of women’s rights and health.
