Two Suitcases, One Dream: Help Rofayda Get to College

My name is Rofayda Fayed, and I’m a 19-year-old Egyptian girl who always introduces herself through three parts: the past, the present, and the future. For the past two years, I’ve been living in Norway, attending UWC Red Cross Nordic — a place that’s shaped me in ways I’m still discovering. Now, I’ve been accepted to Sarah Lawrence College in New York to continue my journey. But despite receiving generous financial aid, I need support to cover visa expenses, travel, and living costs — the final steps between me and this opportunity

The past:

At the age of 9, I moved to a city with a completely different culture, dialect, and rhythm of life. The transition was tough, but what stayed with me through all the change was my deep love for learning. I was homeschooled most of my childhood due to an unsuitable school environment, which gave me the freedom to explore education in creative, personal ways.

My parents also instilled in me a strong sense of community, which is why i started volunteering since I was 9. By 17, I had traveled to 17 governorates across Egypt, volunteering on community projects with local and international NGOs and IGOs . That’s how I learned one of my most important lessons: that travel and human connection are powerful tools for learning — applying knowledge beyond textbooks, and growing through people, places, and stories.

The present:

This journey led me to UWC Red Cross Nordic in Norway, where I was one of only eight Egyptian students selected out of over 1,000 applicants to receive a full scholarship, a dare2dream scholarship. At UWC, I facilitated peace workshops at the Nobel Peace Center in Oslo and was part of the One Ocean Youth Panel in Bergen. UWC RCN changed me. It challenged me. It gave me lifelong friendships, resilience, and a clearer vision of who I want to be.

The future:

Now, I’ve been accepted to Sarah Lawrence College in New York — a place that will let me combine my passions for writing, psychology, and anthropology. I want to understand people deeply and use stories as tools for healing and change. Sarah Lawrence’s flexible academic system allows students to design their own majors, and I know this freedom will help me thrive.

But now, that future is at risk.

Although I’ve received generous financial aid, I still need support for the upfront costs: visa fees, travel, and the high cost of living in New York. My family cannot afford these, and I cannot cover them alone.

Students — especially international ones — often carry the weight of the world on their shoulders, with only two suitcases to support them through the unknown. Not just luggage, but everything we’ve learned, everything we hope to become, and the quiet determination to build something meaningful — far from home.

Thanks to the generosity of others and the Davis Foundation, I was once able to fill those two suitcases with confidence. Now, I hope to do it again.

Your support would mean more than money. It would be a vote of confidence in a girl who taught herself through life, who stood in snow storms at UWC with books in hand, and who is now ready to carry all those lessons into the next chapter of her life.

Thank you for believing in me — and for helping me carry my two suitcases once more.

With deep gratitude,

Rofayda Fayed