Twelve students have graduated from the Right to Dream Academy in Ghana, bringing the total number of graduates in 2022 to 15 so far - the largest since the academy’s establishment in 1999.
While some of this year’s graduates chose to embark on professional football careers, others wanted to pursue their dreams off the pitch as they tapped into the academy’s strong network of schools and universities to secure academic scholarships abroad. Although their pathways may be different, they all have at least one thing in common: Chasing their big dreams.
Having trained for years at one of the best football academies in the world, five graduates found themselves ready to take their first steps in the professional football world, with Modibo and Mubarak already plying their trades in Egypt.
They will be forging their own paths as some of their classmates have already done, including Princess Marfo who joined FC Nordsjælland women’s team earlier this year. While only 18, she’s already a history-maker as she’s our first female graduate to become a professional footballer.
“I would like to thank everyone here who supported me to make this opportunity possible. I know it hasn’t been easy, and life here has been a real journey for me. I have come to understand that life is short, and it’s up to you to live it how you want it,”
Princess said.
Aboubacar Traore is another 2022 graduates who distinguished himself by embarking on an exciting academic journey. He is the first Right to Dream alumnus to enter university without going through high school or college, as the Ivorian will be studying at North Carolina’s Charlotte University.
“Joining Right to Dream is one of the best things that has happened to me in every aspect. Although I have had my highs and lows,”
Traore said.
“I would want to thank everyone involved in the process of developing all of us in every aspect both character wise and physically, to go out there to achieve remarkable things for not us alone, but for everyone."
“One piece of advice I will share with you is to be open to believing in people and, above all, trust yourself,”
he added.
Seven other graduates trusted their academic abilities and chose to pursue an education pathway. Six alumni will be moving to the US to complete their high school studies at Salisbury School, Lawrence Academy, Phelps School, Indian Mountains School, Millbrook School, Cate School, and Berkshire School. Meanwhile, one has secured a high school scholarship at Hartpury in the UK.
With every passing year, more and more Right to Dream graduates are embarking on journeys to pursue their dreams on and off the pitch. Over 250 student-athletes have graduated from the academy so far, as we continue to connect Emerging Excellence with opportunities to develop their talents and pick their pathways in a nurturing environment that merges the worlds of football and education together.