First Person

Debora Sanchez, FFP scholarship student at Zamorano University, training local community members

I am determined to put into practice my professional skills to benefit others, as I have benefited from USDA.

Debora Sanchez graduated from Zamorano University in Honduras in December, 2006 with a degree in Agribusiness Management and a 3.44 grade point average. She is currently a graduate student at Kansas State University and is studying for a dual degree in Agricultural Economics and Public Health.

After completing her studies at Kansas State University, Debora plans on returning to Honduras and providing consulting services related to rural development. She is especially interested in serving communities in the Mosquitia region of Honduras, her birthplace. Eventually she hopes to create her own business so that she can be directly involved with and provide benefits to a greater number of people.

When asked about how her time at Zamorano contributed to her becoming a leader, Debora replied that she learned how to quickly adapt in new situations and live in harmony with other cultures. These skills proved to help her immensely while living and studying in a different country. Because of the help she received from the USDA/FFP scholarship program, she was able to fulfill her dream of studying. After personally benefiting from an institution like USDA that is committed to education and development in her country, she is determined to put in practice her professional skills so that others can benefit as she has. Debora believes Zamorano is a place that teaches hard academics, and also is a time for personal and professional development, where goals are achieved and paths formed. An education from Zamorano creates a ripple effect of positive impacts, from the student to their neighbors and so on, benefiting Hondurans for decades to come.