Akins Early College High School senior Rami Kashakhi will spend the upcoming school year in Morocco before attending the University of Texas at Austin, according to a May 1 announcement. Kashakhi plans to participate in the National Security Language Initiative for Youth, a U.S. Department of State program focused on language learning and international skills.
Kashakhi’s experience highlights opportunities available to students who are interested in civic engagement and global affairs. At Akins, he participated in several organizations including the National Honor Society, Finance Club, and STEM pathway research. He also worked as a student researcher at Texas State University with the Hegde Research Group on sustainable research projects.
Beyond his school activities, Kashakhi served on the Austin Youth Council representing students citywide. He attended the National League of Cities conference twice—once in Washington, D.C., and once in Salt Lake City—and joined AustinCorps where he helped launch a civic project supporting people experiencing homelessness by collecting hygiene products for distribution across Austin. “You just have to search for those opportunities,” Kashakhi said. “And if they’re not there, create them.”
The Austin Independent School District supports a multicultural environment with over 100 languages spoken by students according to the official website. The district operates 116 diverse school communities—including elementary, middle, high schools as well as early college programs according to its official website. More than 72,000 students are educated by over 5,000 classroom teachers within these communities according to district data.
The district maintains a graduation rate of 93.3 percent and reports that its SAT and ACT scores exceed state averages according to its official statistics. It also provides instruction in more than 100 languages and offers programs in eleven languages other than English as stated on its website. The district focuses on partnering with families and community members so that students gain knowledge and skills needed for success after graduation according to their mission statement.
Kashakhi will spend his time abroad learning Arabic while preparing for future work related to international affairs or government service overseas.
