During her 2024–25 winter break, Veda N. ’26 spent a week at G.S. Memorial Hospital in Varanasi, India, researching the socioeconomic factors behind cleft lip and palate conditions. There, she witnessed firsthand how a $10 surgery—an amount many spend without thinking—can transform a child’s life.
Girls State redefined what it means to fail. It provided the opportunity—more importantly, encouraged us—to try new things with the knowledge that we were supported by a network of empowered women, because empowered women empower women.
