Senior Spotlight: The Strength of Sophia Sarwar

A dreamer and a loyal friend, Sophia Sarwar chose Hackett as her school and works harder than most in her free time. 

Sophia went through Saint Augustine Elementary and Middle School till COVID-19 hit. Covid affected Sophia more than most because of her ADHD, which made it hard to concentrate through the last few months of 8th grade. After her graduation Sophia's mother wanted her to “break the private school bubble” and have her attend Loy Norrix freshman year so she could broaden her horizons.

COVID-19 greatly impacted public schools and made students suffer. Sophia was not immune to this suffering and found that online schooling tanked her grades. After reevaluation with her mother, Sophia came to Hackett, the only school in the area with in-person classes. 

Hackett students welcomed back Sophia and she reunited with many of her friends from her youth. Sophia thinks Hackett could be better but all schools have their flaws and she still chose Hackett. 

Sophia’s mother had to raise her alone and the strength that she showed affected Sophia deeply. The consistency that Sophia’s mom has brought to an otherwise chaotic life keeps her grounded. 

The job of a single mother requires strength that seems impossible to those who have not experienced it. The huge display of love and dedication from her mother has made Sophia stronger. Being her mother’s top priority makes Sophia extremely driven to succeed to make her mother happy. 

Sophia has a strong work ethic from her mother and works at Jearsy Giants in her spare time to gain enough money to go to college, as of now Sophia is even looking for a second job so she can be working all summer for her goal. 21

Sophia Sarwar plans to attend Central Michigan University in the fall with an intended major in Biochemistry and a minor in psychology. After CMU Sophia will attempt the exam to get into dental school for which she needs a biology degree. 

Sophia is scared to leave her mom and her dog because of how much they have been an anchor in her life. Sophia is excited to meet new people and finally leave Kalamazoo where she has been most of her life. 

In a couple of years after lots of hard work hopefully, Sophia will fulfill her dream of being an orthodontist, somewhere far away from Kalamazoo.