Class IV (2006-2007)

Sponsor Club: Lancaster, District 7390, USA

Born and raised in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, Amanda was privileged with the support and love of an extended family network.  It was largely through their influence that Amanda cultivated an awareness of social justice issues, which particularly deepened through a volunteer position in Honduras in 1998.  The intensity of this cross-cultural experience directed her undergraduate study away from a prior interest in medicine toward a quest for a greater understanding of larger societal dynamics.  After graduating with a B.A. in Sociology and Spanish from Franklin & Marshall College in 2001, Amanda spent three years serving as a preventative health volunteer with the Peace Corps in the Dominican Republic.  During her first two years, she was involved in community-based empowerment work, and the third year she served as a Peace Corps Volunteer Leader for the Healthy Families sector.  Over the course of the Rotary World Peace Fellowship, Amanda has travelled to Argentina, Brazil, Nepal and Australia and in the process has greatly expanded her perspective and understanding of global issues.  Amanda particularly enjoys working with young people cross-culturally in processes that facilitate the deconstruction of stereotypes to allow space for the building of bridges of empathy and understanding.  She plans to pursue this passion and vision for positive transformation upon graduation from the University of Queensland.