We were overwhelmed and impressed with quality of the applicants; so much that we decided to award five scholarships this year. Here are this year’s Ahura scholarship recipients:
Ahura scholar: • Ms. Shireen Farhad Cama $3000
Ahura striver: • Mr. Kamran Afshari $1000 • Ms. Parisa Javedani $1000 • Ms. Katayoun Salamati $1000 • Ms. Venus Vakhshori $1000 * Note Ms. Vakhshori is not related to any of the Ahura scholarship board members.
Each one has shown exceptional leadership in different aspects of their respective academic fields, community, and life in general. We present these five individuals as role models for Zoroastrian youth to follow, in hope of seeing more of our youth showing similar leadership qualities in upcoming years.
Koorosh Vakhshoori Member of the board of directors Ahura scholarship
Here is each recipient’s short biography:
Shireen Farhad Cama is from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and is currently in her third year at Harvard Medical School. In 2004, she graduated with honors and a B.A. in Economics from Yale University, where she focused on health policy.
After college, Shireen spent a year as a Congressional Hunger Fellow, working with both grassroots and policy oriented anti-hunger organizations in New York City and Washington, DC. The educational material she developed was featured as a “Promising Practice in Food Stamp Outreach” by the USDA. Shireen has also worked in India and Nicaragua on public health and community empowerment programs for women and adolescents. In her medical career, Shireen hopes to uplift the situation of marginalized and impoverished groups in the US and in developing nations by incorporating a multifaceted approach to their health needs.
Shireen is a recipient of several Zarathushti scholarships and is an active member of the Zarathushti community, having served as a member of FEZANA’s UN Team, as a guest editor for the FEZANA Journal on an issue focused on social justice, and as one of the current leaders of the Zarathushti Students of Boston.
See Shireen's Video:
Kamran Afshari is currently a senior Electrical Engineering undergraduate at the University of California – Los Angeles. As a result of his research experience at Cornell University, he has been welcomed to a PhD program which has introduced the challenging decision of choosing between the academia and the industry.
As both member and officer of engineering organizations such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineer (IEEE) and Eta Kappa Nu (HKN), Kamran has been organizing events and inviting speakers from different institutions and companies to UCLA.
Kamran has been recognized and awarded on issues relating to both his research work and non-academic activities. He is a people person who enjoys traveling and getting to know others from different walks of lives. He admires the concept of a family and a group, and lives life responsibly by taking on big problems and striving to make a difference.
See Kamran's Video:
Parisa Javedani is a senior pursuing her B.S. in Human Physiology at University of Oregon in Eugene, OR. She is a member of several honor societies that recognize academic achievement, leadership, and service. Parisa has received several prestigious awards, including the Presidential Scholar and Bowerman awards from the University of Oregon. She is also on the Dean’s List. Parisa has undertaken leadership positions in student organizations on campus, including a vice-president position in Alpha Chi Omega. In her free time, she enjoys skiing, swimming, and playing tennis. After graduation, Parisa hopes to pursue a career in medicine.
Aside from her academic achievements, Parisa is also an active member of both the Portland and Eugene communities, and she has volunteered for over 5 years with several non-profit organizations. Parisa believes it is important to contribute one’s time and talents to help better the community and works hard to motivate and inspire her peers to take an active role in their communities.
Katayoun Salamati is currently pursuing her master degree in Industrial Engineering in University of Southern California, Los Angeles, where she is also working as a teaching assistant and research assistant. Prior to coming to US, Katayoun completed her B.S. degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, Iran.
Katayoun was also an active member of several Zoroastrian organizations. She was involved in Tehran Zoroastrian Association by being the board member of Youth committee, where she held several events for the improvement of youth conditions in Zoroastian communities in Iran. She was also an active member of Zoroastrian Student Organization (ZSO) for 4 years where she was on the organizing committees of events held by ZSO.
Katayoun’s goal is to improve the women situation in Iran and in Zarthoshty community and to find ways to provide better education for people, especially Zarthoshty youth. She believes education in any specialty – engineering, science, medicine, and religious education – provides people a better quality of life.
See Katayoun's Video:
Venus Vakhshori is a first-year undergraduate at the University of California Los Angeles, currently debating a career in medicine or biomedical engineering. In high school her interests were math, science, Track and Field, Cross Country, and tutoring. Her favorite extra curricular activity in high school was Academic Decathlon. Her team got first place in the nation and she was the highest scorer from her team and in the entire country.
Currently, Venus is a coach for the Belmont High School Academic Decathlon team. She also is part of the Bruin Runners club and the Alumni Scholars Club. Her favorite program as a member of the Alumni Scholars Club is “I’m Going To College,” a program designed to motivate underprivileged inner-city youth and help them achieve their dreams of one day attending a four-year university. She also hopes to begin research with the chemistry department this summer.
Even though she loves science and hopes to be able to use it to contribute to the welfare of the world one day, Venus also enjoys learning about everything, including art, environmental science, music, economics, and social sciences.
Shireen Farhad Cama is from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and is currently in her third year at Harvard Medical School. In 2004, she graduated with honors and a B.A. in Economics from Yale University, where she focused on health policy.
Kamran Afshari is currently a senior Electrical Engineering undergraduate at the University of California – Los Angeles. As a result of his research experience at Cornell University, he has been welcomed to a PhD program which has introduced the challenging decision of choosing between the academia and the industry.
Parisa Javedani is a senior pursuing her B.S. in Human Physiology at University of Oregon in Eugene, OR. She is a member of several honor societies that recognize academic achievement, leadership, and service. Parisa has received several prestigious awards, including the Presidential Scholar and Bowerman awards from the University of Oregon. She is also on the Dean’s List. Parisa has undertaken leadership positions in student organizations on campus, including a vice-president position in Alpha Chi Omega. In her free time, she enjoys skiing, swimming, and playing tennis. After graduation, Parisa hopes to pursue a career in medicine.
Katayoun Salamati is currently pursuing her master degree in Industrial Engineering in University of Southern California, Los Angeles, where she is also working as a teaching assistant and research assistant. Prior to coming to US, Katayoun completed her B.S. degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, Iran. 
Venus Vakhshori is a first-year undergraduate at the University of California Los Angeles, currently debating a career in medicine or biomedical engineering. In high school her interests were math, science, Track and Field, Cross Country, and tutoring. Her favorite extra curricular activity in high school was Academic Decathlon. Her team got first place in the nation and she was the highest scorer from her team and in the entire country.
