My name is Daniyal Khan. I was born in Dayton, Ohio to Tariq and Sumera Khan. Both my parents immigrated to America in the early 90’s from Pakistan. While I was born in Dayton I have spent most of my life in Mason, a suburb in Cincinnati. I live in the typical Asian household where grades always come first and work ethic is demanded in whatever I did. My parents are probably a big reason for the person I am today. They constantly pushed me to do better, regardless of if it was basketball practice or class assignments. I can honestly say I’m not the smartest guy in a class room but I’m a firm believer that results are shown through consistently giving it your best. If I give it my best, regardless of what the result is, good or bad, I can be satisfied that I did all I could.
I attended high school at St. Xavier High School. Throughout my four years I was involved in almost every club and activity I could find. I was involved in Spanish club. I helped set up book drives for National Honors Society. I participated in our Canned Food Drive every year with my homeroom. I gave tours and spoke to families of prospective students through the Admission Core Team. During my Senior year I was elected onto Student Council where I helped set up school wide events, lead pep rallies before big games, and my “favorite”…chaperone freshmen mixers. The reason I got so involved at school was because I really enjoy meeting new people and getting involved with things outside of my comfort zone.
Aside from school, Cincinnati hold one of the biggest Muslim communities in the midwest and being Muslim the Islamic Center of Greater Cincinnati or ICGC was like a second home for my family and I. Many of my closest friends were people I met through coming to this mosque every Friday. ICGC also has a youth group, which held social, community service, and spiritual events which really had a strong effect on the person I am today. Especially through the community service events we did at places like The Ronald McDonald house I realized that I’d really like to help the less fortunate and make a difference in the world. Even now in my summers I make sure to volunteer at hospitals, shelters, and other organizations and do my part to make a difference.
Hobbies of mine include working out and playing basketball. You can probably find me at the RPAC doing both of these activities. I love watching football (Go Bucks). Unfortunately I root for the Bengals and I’m a huge LeBron fan. I’m also struggling with my Netflix addiction and I enjoy binge watching The Office and Parks and Rec
STEM scholars really seemed like the perfect program for me. It combined my love for science and innovative technology and gave me an outlet to get involved the same way I did in High school. I look forward to visits to COSI museum and meeting all the great people who share similar interest as me in science related topics.