Despite being the youngest person in her class, Urbana High School (UHS) senior Devangana Rana is making huge moves to help her surrounding community feel safer and more at home. As a member of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Youth Preparedness Council Member and a position as Education Resource Specialist for the YesSheCanCampaign, Devangana is providing educational resources to girls from underrepresented communities nationwide. This week, she sat down to discuss her several roles (both local and national), what it’s like being a student at UHS, and how she has adjusted to remote learning over the past few months.
So Devangana, how long have you been a student in Urbana?
I have been a student at UHS since Freshman year.
It’s so inspiring to see how involved you are as a young person. We will get to the details of everything you’ve done, but I’d really like to know what pushed you to become so involved as a leader in your school. Was it family, resources in school, or a mix of both?
So I’m from India and there are so many children in India which would love to go to a high school in America. I visit India almost every year and I see child laborers and kids not having access to education. Seeing them really motivates me to take advantage of every opportunity given to me in the United States. I aim to go back to India and create an NGO to help girls get access to education in my home state of Himachal Pradesh, India.
In what ways have your peers and your mentors/teachers at UHS supported you and all your ventures?
Ms. Smith has helped me immensely with my endeavors. She always encourages me to apply to any program that I am interested in and writes a lot of teacher recommendations for me. Mr. Davis has also let me know that I can achieve anything that I put my mind to and overall instills confidence in me.
One way you’re a leader here in Urbana is your position with FEMA as a youth preparedness council member. What is it like being a part of that council in the middle of a pandemic?
Being part of the FEMA NYPC has been a really interesting experience. Since all the youth preparedness council members are from all parts of the U.S. we have online meetings. Thus, our communication has not been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic that much. Being part of a council that focuses on disaster-preparedness in the middle of the pandemic makes me feel good that I’m helping communities across the U.S. in some way. The pandemic really shows the public how important it is to be prepared for natural disasters and emergencies.
What type of resources and materials are you sharing with your local community members through this role?
I am sharing booklets and interactive games produced by FEMA in my neighborhood to inform international students about disasters that occur in the Midwest that they may have never faced before in their native countries. I am also helping conduct safety webinars for people of all ages across the country.
You’re also pretty busy with your Global Transition Events, I see. Tell us a little bit about these events.
Earlier this year, I won the National Call for Kindness Contest for creating a community project that inspires empathy, kindness, and interconnectedness in a local community. I won a $1000 grant and gained access to a fellowship. My project-Global Transition Events aims to get new international students in my neighborhood accustomed to American culture. Through each event, they are taught a different facet of American culture such as how to order food, how to make small talk, and how to go grocery shopping. As a result of the pandemic, I was not able to launch my events in person but I am currently planning them to be online.
Where did the idea to do these events come from?
This idea came from my own experience moving to the United States as an international student 10 years ago. I felt very isolated and lonely because of the language barrier and culture shock. Over the years, I grew more accustomed to living in the United States but I saw new international students in my neighborhood facing the same problems that my family had faced. Thus, I was motivated to create a project to help them.
These are projects that expand outside of the walls of UHS, but I see that you’re also pretty involved inside of the school, including being president of Key Club at UHS. Tell us a little bit about your role in Key Club and the fundraising you do through the club.
As the President of Key Club, I conduct weekly meetings and volunteering events. Right now, we are volunteering online by political phone banking, answering trivia to donate food around the world, and writing thank you letters to healthcare workers. We are also organizing a fundraiser to raise funds for Swataleem- an organization working to provide access to education to girls from rural India and prevent child marriage.
Rana with UHS Tennis teammates 
Rana posing after a tennis match 
Rana with UHS Key Club members 
Rana online sharing information about her YesSheCanCampaign position
Speaking of school, we are in the middle of remote learning, and I know this must have been a huge adjustment for you seeing as though you’re so involved. Tell us a little bit about how you’ve adjusted to this experience.
Remote learning has been a bit difficult for me but being involved with my extracurriculars online and interacting with people through them has made it better. I also play tennis and seeing my friends in person through that tennis really helps me.
What would you say your biggest challenges have been as a remote learner? How have you managed to work around them?
My biggest challenge has been finding a quiet place to do online school as I live in an apartment and my mother and my sister also have classes. However, I now do my classes in the computer lab in my neighborhood which is a really quiet place.
What about the upside of remote learning? Is there anything you enjoy about it that you found surprising?
I like how I have more time to complete assignments and work on my college applications. I also like that I don’t have to wake up at 6 AM.
As we wrap this up, I want to circle back around to our community here in Urbana. Since you’ve been here for so many years, where do you hope to see the community make improvements to get better?
I hope to see more students involved in extracurriculars and programs within UHS and outside it. There is also a huge racial disparity in AP classes and clubs which I hope will change in the future.
How do you hope to be involved in that change?
I hope to inform more students at UHS about various opportunities and programs that are available specifically for low-income students and students of color. I also want to lead by example and show that there are so many opportunities available for students to help them succeed in whatever endeavor they are interested in.
Stay tuned next week as Devanana walks us through a day as a remote learning student. Watch the video on our Facebook and don’t forget to follow us on all our social media platforms! #UrbanaBetterTogether