FAR Mathevosian Program scholar Ashkhen Minasyan is in her fourth year at Yerevan State University’s Department of Economics. Last week, Ashkhen organized a conference on blood donation at the university with the support of the Robert Bosch Foundation, the MitOst Association’s Theodor-Heuss-Kolleg project and YSU’s student council.
Ashkhen and her classmate Ashot Markosyan organized the event after researching the shortage of donated blood in Armenia. According to their findings, 0.4 percent of Armenians have donated blood.
“We should be ready to donate blood without any expectations, and for no other reason than to save human lives,” explained Ashkhen. While Ashkhen herself cannot be a donor because of a childhood illness, she is dedicated to advocating for increased blood donation.
“After the seminar, we are going to visit a blood bank with those who wish to donate,” she said. These are just the first steps. This summer, she will participate in a training in Germany on public health, which will aid her efforts to establish her own organization that will promote the importance of volunteer blood donation.
FAR’s Mathevosian Scholarship Program provides much-needed assistance to students from extremely poor families. More than half of these recipients grew up in households with only one parent or with disabled parents. Through tuition coverage and a stipend, Mathevosian scholars have the opportunity to study at leading institutions.