Winds of Change - Fall 2017 - 18

SOFIA KEHUALANI
PANARELLA
NATIVE HAWAI'IAN / BROWN UNIVERSITY /
ECONOMICS AND PUBLIC HEALTH

S

ofia Panarella
has lived in
many places,
from Oregon
to Montana to
Rhode Island,
but regardless
of where she
lives, she is, and always will be, a
Native Hawai'ian. Moving from
place to place opened Panarella's
eyes to the differences in living
conditions and services available
to individuals across the United
States. It was these differences
18 WINDS OF CHANGE * FALL 2017

that pushed her to pursue a
dream she didn't even realize she
had: to obtain a degree in
economics and public health in
order to make real change for real
people, wherever she may be.
Born in Portland, Ore.,
Panarella lived there for the first
decade of her life. While she was
in middle school, Panarella's
parents decided they wanted to
be closer to their family back in
Montana. The summer before
seventh grade, Panarella and her
family made the move to

Missoula, Mont., a town of
around 70,000 people.
Living in a remote town has
its challenges, as Panarella found
out when she attended Hellgate
High School. While Panarella's
parents and grandparents had
always been big proponents of
getting an education and
supported her desire to go to
college, many in her high school
did not feel the same way. What's
more, some were not always
respectful of her Native identity.
Panarella tried to make the best

of it, seeking out allies, striking up
conversations with those ignorant
of her Native background to help
them understand her culture, and
never losing sight of her goal to
further her education.
With the help of her parents,
Panarella learned how to navigate
the college application process. "I
was so fortunate to have parents
who guided me through standardized testing, essay writing, and
finally picking a school that is right
for me," she says. Panarella's hard
work and dedication paid off, and
she was accepted to Brown
University for the fall of 2016.
Unfortunately, many in
Panarella's community did not see
her acceptance to an Ivy League
school as the amazing accomplishment that it was. "A Native kid
trying to do something out of the
ordinary is not always well received
by the community," she says.
"People said hurtful, demeaning
things with regard to my Native
identity and the stereotypes that
are sometimes associated with
being Native."
Thankfully, Panarella was able
to leave the negativity behind as
she made her way to Providence,
R.I., for her freshman year. "College
has been the most amazing thing I
have done in my life so far. I feel
closer to my friends, more
interested in my studies, and
prouder of my accomplishments
than ever before," she says.
But Panarella's first year at
Brown was not always easy. She
constantly felt as if she wasn't
capable or deserving of being
there, and that her education from
her small public high school was
inferior to the one received by her
peers at their fancy private schools.
"In those moments of doubt, I like
to remind myself that regardless of
anything that happened in the
past, I can succeed," she says. "And
I can do more than succeed - I
can thrive!"
With a new positive attitude,
Panarella made friends, began
playing on the Brown Club
Tennis team, joined a sorority,
and threw herself into her studies,
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Winds of Change - Fall 2017

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