Fall 2026 Winner of the Immigrant Student Scholarship

Peace Osiriamen Amhanesi

Originally from Benin City, Nigeria, Peace is not only an immigrant attending college in the United States, but she is also a first-generation college student. This fall, she will begin her journey to obtain her masters degree. The Law Office of Jae Lee is thrilled to provide this support to Peace to make her academic pursuits less stressful.

Read Their Essay Here:

The day I left Nigeria, I was not just traveling for school. I was carrying the weight of a future my family could not afford, but believed in anyway. I came to the United States from Benin City, Nigeria, in 2022 to pursue my undergraduate degree. My parents are still in Nigeria, working tirelessly to make ends meet. Supporting my education from abroad was never financially possible, but they gave me something more valuable: trust. Trust that I would make the opportunity count. From the moment I arrived, I understood that failure was not just personal, it would mean losing the chance my family had sacrificed for.

Adjusting was not easy. I had to adapt quickly to a new academic system, new expectations, and a different pace of life, all while managing financial uncertainty. There were moments where everything felt unstable, especially when opportunities I depended on, like internships, disappeared unexpectedly. But those moments did not break me. They refined me. I learned how to stay focused even when things didn't go as planned.

Today, I graduate as the valedictorian of my class with a 4.0 GPA in Computer and Information Science. That achievement represents more than academic success. It represents every late night, every doubt I had to push through, and every decision to keep going when it would have been easier to stop.

What makes me different is not just my academic performance, but how I think about the work I do. During my research and internships, I began to notice a pattern. Many systems in technology are built to work well in ideal conditions, but fail in real-world situations, especially for people who are not represented in the data. As someone who has lived between different environments, I understand what it feels like to exist outside the systems built around you.

That realization shaped my interest in artificial intelligence and machine learning. I want to build systems that are not only accurate, but reliable across different communities and conditions. My goal is to pursue a Masters degree in Computer Science and continue working in AI, focusing on solutions that have real impact.

Beyond my career, I want to give back in a way that reflects where I come from. In Nigeria, many young girls have the ability to succeed in technology but lack access, guidance and opportunity. I want to create pathways for them, through mentorship, education, and exposure, so they can see what is possible and pursue it.

Right now, my biggest challenge is not ability, but access. I have received admission into graduate programs, but without funding, continuing my education is uncertain. This scholarship would help bridge that gap and allow me to take the next step without losing the progress I have worked so hard to build. My journey is still unfolding, I did not come this far just to stop here. I came to build something meaningful, not only for myself, but for the people and communities that shaped me.