CARY, N.C. (WNCN) — As students across Central North Carolina head back to school this week, one local high school senior is working to help others further their education.

Education is extremely important to Tanya Sachdev, but the senior at Cary Academy isn’t just thinking about her own studies. She became passionate about helping refugees after hearing a radio program a couple of years ago.

“I started a club at my school called STAR – Students Together Assisting Refugees,” she explained.

While volunteering with local organizations that assist refugees, Sachdev says one student’s story really touched her.

“One of the refugee students there told me about her dream to pursue a four-year college degree and how, due to her family’s financial means, that would be impossible for her,” she recalled.

Hoping to help more refugees go to college, Sachdev decided to start a nonprofit. It’s called Empowering Refugee Children and it works with other local organizations to provide scholarships for refugees.

“On World Refugee Day, we handed our first scholarship of $1,000 to a refugee from Tanzania,” Sachdev said.

In a video posted on the nonprofit’s webpage, scholarship recipient Riziki Jaques thanks Empowering Refugee Children.

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“The scholarship I received from them has helped me a lot,” she says. “As an African girl, education is important to me because most African girls don’t get a chance to finish their school.”

“Here in America, it’s not like that,” she continued. “We’re able to study and get wherever we can.”

Both Jaques and Sachdev hope the nonprofit will continue to grow and provide more people with educational opportunities.