2023 Aicha Hermes

Aicha is the first female student with a headscarf in Albemarle’s Math, Engineering, and Science Academy and has been an inspiration to other young women who wear the headscarf and want to pursue STEM.  It was intimidating to feel judged for her cultural background and her headscarf, but Aicha has bounced back.  She is an audacious woman unafraid to challenge norms and break barriers. She plans to study medicine to help others in the way doctors have helped her and her family.

Aicha taught herself to sew and joined a sewing club, mentoring younger students as they sewed more than 200 bibs and blankets for needy women in a single day.  She wants to thread together compassionate sewers to create needed items for the underprivileged. Later, as a doctor, she knows her needle and thread will always be with her as she sews chemotherapy turbans for women and toys for her child patients. Aicha currently attends New York University.