Since 2016, M&T Charitable Foundation/M&T Bank has provided support to College Possible Philadelphia. To celebrate this partnership, College Possible will be profiling students throughout the 2019-2020 academic year. Thanks to M&T’s continued commitment, College Possible will continue to support more students from low-income backgrounds in the Philadelphia region on their journeys to a college degree.
Penn Wood High School senior, Fatima Fofanah, is a motivated student and an integral member of her community. At school, she is president of the Fashion Club, a member of the National Honors Society, the National Math Honor Society and the National Science Honor Society, as well as an active member of College Possible. On weekends, Fatima volunteers with Muslim Youth of Philadelphia, a community youth mentorship organization she helped establish in response to a fatal shooting in her southwest Philadelphia community.
As someone who likes to think ahead and prepare for her future, Fatima joined College Possible to support her collegiate aspirations. Like many high school students, she was astonished by all the steps involved in the college application process. For many students – especially those from first-generation backgrounds, like Fatima – the college process can be convoluted and overwhelming.
But Fatima had support from her College Possible coach, Izzy, who helped navigate the process.
“I tell Izzy this all the time – I don’t know what I would do without you. It’s really amazing the hands on help that you get,” shares Fatima.
Fatima hopes college will lead to her ultimate goal of attending medical school. “I want to study to be a physician,” she says. “I might want to be a surgeon because I do love the human body. I think it’s pretty interesting – the things we don’t know and the things we do know – it amplifies my curiosity.”
With acceptances rolling in from the 15 college applications she submitted, Fatima’s undergraduate career is just beginning and her excitement is palpable. “I see [college] as a whole new chapter where you can rewrite your story and I feel like that’s what I want to do. Rewrite my story and allow people to get to know me. Whoever I choose to be or find out that I am, it’s a process of exploring. I’m really excited for this new journey.”
