Born on February 2, 1990, in Lviv, Ukraine, Maryana Vrubel moved to the United States along with her parents in the summer of 1998. She now lives with her mother and father in Roslindale. Learning English was a lot easier than retaining her Ukrainian identity, nevertheless, Maryana has managed to stay true to her roots. She is a member of the Ukrainian Scouting Organization PLAST and a soprano in the Christ the King Ukrainian Catholic Church Choir as well as long time supporter and follower of the Ukrainian National Soccer Team. However Maryana also embraced the American aspect of her life and excelled enough in her first four years of school in the United States to be admitted to Boston Latin School as a seventh grader. Now a rising senior, in her many years at Boston Latin, she has become involved in various school activities including athletics and the music program and has become a member of the National Honor Society during the winter of her Junior year. In a multitude of choirs since she entered the school, Maryana is now an officer of the Concert Choir and continues her singing in Show Choir. Also, after three years of being a coxswain on the Varsity Crew Team, she is excited to lead the girls as captain for her last year.

Pursuing her passion for studying anthropology, Maryana hopes to attend a top-tier college on the East Coast and major in history with a focus on 20 th Century studies. She also wishes to supplement her love of learning about people by minoring in psychology. After undergraduate school, she wants to spend a year travelling and continue her education in law school.

Maryana's interest in public service began the summer before her junior year after she visited her homeland of Ukraine. Seeing the devastation caused by an unstable government and the inactive role of the citizens, she realized the benefits afforded by a place such as the United States, where the people take initiative to improve their country. After taking the Facing History and Ourselves course as well as becoming a tutor for the Saturday Success School at Boston Latin, Maryana saw that she too could make a difference even in small ways. By applying to the Ward Fellowship, she wanted to see how others were changing the world and how she too could take part in the plethora of opportunities.

 

Through the Ward Fellowship, Maryana has been awarded the privilege of working in the chambers of the Honorable Patti B. Saris, a United States District Judge.