杏吧原创

Business major Anna Kouadio has built an impressive r茅sum茅 at UMass Lowell: Senior Class President, vice president, secretary, .

It鈥檚 even more impressive when you consider how far she鈥檚 come in the past decade.

When she was 12 years old, Kouadio got on a plane by herself and left West Africa鈥檚 Ivory Coast to live with her dad, Aime, in Lowell. Knowing little English, Kouadio quickly learned the language by reciting flash cards her dad taped to items around the house, watching Disney TV shows and becoming a voracious reader.

One of her favorite books was 鈥淎 Long Way Gone,鈥� the memoir of Ishmael Beah, a child soldier during the Sierra Leone civil war in the 1990s. Having lived through a civil war in her native Ivory Coast, Kouadio could identify with Beah.

鈥淚t was really scary,鈥� says Kouadio, who remembers waking up many mornings at 5 a.m. to hide under the bed with her cousins while rebels who had overtaken their town would start shooting to assert their control.聽

鈥淲alking the street with my family and seeing body parts all over 鈥� it's not something anyone should ever have to experience,鈥� says Kouadio, who credits her mom, Lea, and extended family members for doing their best to shield her from the trauma of the war, which ended in 2011. Her mom still lives in Ivory Coast.

Kouadio started college at UMass Boston but transferred to UML鈥檚 Manning School of Business as a sophomore to be closer to her dad during the COVID-19 pandemic.

鈥淚t's the best decision I ever made,鈥� she says. 鈥淭here are so many opportunities here, and the professors are so great. I fell in love with this school. I don鈥檛 know if people say that, but I did. I love being here. It鈥檚 kind of like an oasis.鈥�

In addition to her extracurricular activities and her marketing听补苍诲 management studies, Kouadio has worked two jobs to help pay her way through school, as a pharmacy technician at CVS and a bartender at Mill City BBQ and Brew in downtown Lowell.

鈥淚'm not going to lie: I'm not getting as much sleep as I should, but I feel like it's worth it. I feel more anxiety when I don't have things to do,鈥� says Kouadio, who 鈥渓oves鈥� keeping her busy schedule organized on multiple calendars.

鈥淚've always had to work harder than everybody else around me to catch up, so that gave me the drive to make sure that I'm always doing good,鈥� she says. 鈥淎nd being from Africa, things are very different over there than they are here. There's always been a certain set of goals, or expectations, that my parents have set for me.鈥�

Kouadio plans to continue for her MBA from the Manning School and hopes to work in the hospitality industry.聽

鈥淚 love communicating with people and getting to know them,鈥� says Kouadio, who has become known at the Manning School for her inclusive personality 鈥� usually sitting next to new members at club meetings.

It鈥檚 a strength she developed from once being the new kid who barely spoke English.

鈥淚 hated that feeling. I don鈥檛 think anyone should experience that,鈥� she says. 鈥淪o, if I can make someone feel better, I will always do that.鈥�