Join Lida in Her Journey from Armenia to Harvard

Hello, I’m Lida – a dot. I was born and lived most of my life (so far) in Ijevan, a small town in Armenia that has big dreams and a big heart.

Recently, I have been accepted into all three graduate schools I have applied to: Harvard Graduate School of Education, Teachers College at Columbia University, and Penn Graduate School of Education — ranked as the top graduate schools of education in the world. Guess the shock! It was a celebration at home and in my hometown.

Although I equally loved all three schools, I have selected to attend Harvard due to the specific program (Education Policy) and higher financial aid offered. As I am planning this journey, the financial burden places this goal just out of reach. With a $99,944 total cost of attendance, I have managed to cover $32,500 with a scholarship from Harvard, $20,500 with a maximum student loan allowed to take, and other organizational scholarships available for Armenian students. However, I am facing a significant gap of $34,000 to cover the living costs which I am hopeful to bridge with your support.

The title of my “wish-letter” to you says from Armenia to the halls of Harvard, but I am scared. The journey I have chosen to walk is full of challenges. I don’t even deny that I might, at some point, want to go back to Ijevan, cuddle in my grandma’s lap, and forget about everything. However, despite the urge to stay in the highlands, attending Harvard is not only my dream. It is the dream of my whole family, town, friends, and homeland.

Our muddy white opel stops at a blockaded corridor near the war-torn yet heartwarming Nagorno-Karabakh region. My brain is on auto-pilot as I interpret conversations for Dr. Thomas Becker, a former Clinical Instructor at Harvard Law School, and a student who cannot return home because of the imposed blockade. I turn to Professor Becker and hopelessly ask, “Can I – a tiny and insignificant dot, change anything?”

“One dot can’t, but a group of dots can,” he said. On a seven-hour road back to Yerevan with the landscapes of buildings just getting reconstructed after the last war, I start looking for the dots – the disconnected dots in war-torn generations.

At fifteen, I witnessed my first war. My sister’s classmates went to the war. Many did not return. Those who did, did not continue their education.

At nineteen, I witnessed my second war. Many of my classmates went to the war, some did not return. Those who did, did not continue their education.

At twenty, the third.

At twenty-one, the fourth. My brother’s classmates went to the war. Some did not return. Some will not continue their education.

At twenty-two, I am giving up war as a part of my identity. Peace no longer should be the absence of war. Education is peace. Growing up in a country shattered by war, I learned early on that education is more than just books and classrooms. It’s about building communities, bridging divides, and healing wounds. It is the only tool I can use to empower marginalized and conflict-affected generations to move forward, to let go. Like I did.

I am not going to Harvard because it is a top university or has fancy halls. I have a mission and that mission is to o effect systemic educational change in my Armenia (and perhaps beyond?).

Now, as I stand on the road to Harvard, it feels like a moment to not just dream big but bring those dreams to life. I want to study at Harvard’s Education Policy and Analysis program with this vivid image in my head: Upon graduation, I am entering the Education Ministry in Armenia. A sign on the left corner of the second floor reads: Lida Asilyan, Education Policy Analyst and Consultant. I am armed with skills in data and evidence analysis, policy evaluation and implementation, strengthening the ties between borderline communities, states, diaspora, and the world through international educational partnership programs.

For me, policy is no longer a mere government decision about the masses but with an individual in the center. Just about a single dot. Now I am in the world of policy-makers where the decisions are up to those who experience the impact of these policies firsthand.

Now, wake up, Lida, wake up! You still have a fundraising to go!

This GoFundMe campaign is an invitation to join me in a mission to strengthen Armenia through education to ensure that no child's potential is dimmed by war or hardship. Your contribution will directly support my studies at Harvard, enabling me to bring back knowledge and strategies that can transform educational policy and practice in Armenia, one day, I promise!

To read my full statement of purpose that won my acceptance to Harvard, to review my resume and other important documents go through this link: https://linktr.ee/lida_asilyan

With all my gratitude and hope,

Lida Asilyan