Following a big dream

A first generation college student from Charlotte, Emaan Hashi felt drawn to UNC-Chapel Hill from her early days. Her father was a huge Tar Heel fan, and she had visited campus with friends who had older siblings at Carolina.

“I always really liked the feel of the school here,” Hashi said. “I liked that people smile at each other here, and I knew it was just generally a really friendly place and that the professors are awesome.”

As a member of the National Honor Society and a leader in student government, Hashi excelled in high school. Four years at Carolina was her big dream, but not one that she was certain was attainable. The daughter of refugees from Somalia, Hashi didn’t want college expenses to place financial strain on her family.

“I don’t think I would’ve been able to come to Carolina without the Blue Sky Scholars Program,” Hashi said. “It gave me the chance to be a student here. I love that my parents don’t have to worry about working extra hours to be able to provide for me through school. Blue Sky is the reason I’m at Carolina, and I love it here.”

Hashi is an information science major and wants to help people like her parents who struggle to use technology because of language barriers. With the help of a stipend through the Blue Sky Scholars Program, she served as a user-experience research and product intern at a media company in the summer of 2024.

“Since my parents came to America, a lot of technology has been kind of inaccessible for them,” Hashi said. “I would love to do work that focuses on outreach with immigrant communities or people whose first language isn’t English and help make technology more accessible for them.”

(Photo by Jen Hughey/UNC-Chapel Hill)

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