Fatima Valdez
High school student turned health leader
Fremont High School is among the lowest-performing schools nationwide and has been identified as a health “hot spot” school within the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). The vast majority of its students live in low-income households, with more than 60 percent of the community’s residents living well below the poverty level. 3 out of every 10 students will have a sexually transmitted disease by the time they graduate.
The Story of Fatima
Fatima Valdez, a young student at Fremont High School, became concerned that many of her peers were getting pregnant and missing out on their bright futures. When she was a sophomore, she decided to take action and applied to be a Student Health Leader with the UMMA Fremont High School Clinic.
The Student Health Leadership group was established as a peer health education model that trains the Fremont high school students on various health issues, promotes healthy behaviors and links students to the Wellness Center. The students serve as peer educators on the Fremont campus. This year, over 80 students applied to earn a seat for one of fifteen positions at the highly competitive program.
“The cure for cancer, the next president, or the next Albert Einstein may be in a school with no resources and might end up becoming a janitor…”
UMMA Student Health Leaders like Fatima Valdez need your support to continue the important work of providing free health education to their fellow students.
