Boyertown to Yale: Lula Mekonnen’s Journey of Curiosity, Commitment, Community

by Lesley Misko

Walking through Yale University’s storied gates this fall, Lula Mekonnen will be stepping into the fulfillment of a dream over a decade in the making. For the Boyertown Area Senior High 2025 grad, who has long envisioned herself on the Ivy League campus, it is more than just the next step in her education. It is the realization of persistence, support, and a passion for science that began when she was a little girl following her father into the lab.

“Yale has been my dream school since I was like five years old and attending Gilbertsville Elementary,” Lula said. Despite her determination to attend Yale, Lula applied broadly, submitting applications to every Ivy League school, plus Stanford, MIT, Duke, Johns Hopkins, and others. But as she visited schools, Yale remained her north star. “Once I was able to actually conceptualize how I could go there, it was always Yale,” she said. “I visited and just fell in love with the campus. It’s beautiful, and when I went to the summer program and met so many amazing people, I was absolutely dead set on it. It was always Yale, Yale, Yale, and I never looked back.” 

Lula's choice of t-shirt foreshadowed her future.

Lula’s dream, however, was not guaranteed. When she first applied to Yale under the highly competitive early action program, her application was deferred to the later candidate applicant pool. For a moment, the vision she had carried with her for so long seemed uncertain.

“I was upset after I was deferred,” she recalled. “But eventually I realized that it’s still what I want to do, and I can’t give up just because they deferred me. I kind of pushed through trying to maintain that perspective. Maybe I’m a bit stubborn, but I wasn’t going to let go of it.”

Her persistence paid off. Months later, she received the news she had been waiting for: she was accepted.  

Lula received an email that gave her the good news!

Rooted in Science, Inspired by Family

Lula’s passion for neuroscience was nurtured both in the classroom and at home. Her father, who earned his Ph.D. in Australia after undergraduate studies in Ethiopia, runs a biosciences company focused on chemistry. Some of his projects relate to neuroscience and the fight against Alzheimer’s disease.

As a child, Lula often accompanied him to the lab. She remembers being younger than ten, gazing at the beakers and chemistry equipment without fully understanding what was happening, but feeling inspired, nonetheless. “It was the environment I was in at that age,” she said. “Eventually I got to like the idea of following his footsteps into science.”  

Lula and her parents after the Boyertown graduation ceremony.

That early exposure became a positive feedback loop. As her curiosity deepened, her father encouraged her, and the two shared a love of science that shaped her career aspirations.  

“Eventually, I started focusing on neuroscience because I realized I am really interested in how your brain functions and how chemical imbalances or chemistry in your brain leads to the decisions that we make every day and the emotions that we have,” she explained. “I just thought that was super interesting since middle school.”

Teachers Who Made a Difference

While her family provided a strong foundation, Lula is quick to point to her teachers as central to her journey.

Among them is biology teacher Jean Battinieri, whom she credits with sparking her scientific focus. “I had her for Honors Bio and then AP Bio, and I became super close with her,” Lula said. “I told her about what I wanted to do in the future with neuroscience and she was just super supportive. I am so thankful for that.”

Her AP English teacher, Daniel DiLanzo, also stands out. “I can just tell that he has a love for literature, and it helps so much while we’re in class because he’s genuinely enthusiastic while he’s teaching. It’s refreshing to be in a classroom where the teacher is so motivating.”

Another mentor was Mr. Fries, the class advisor. As class treasurer since sophomore year, Lula worked closely with him and the other officers. “He knew that I wanted to go to Yale, and he kind of got to see that come into fruition this year,” she said. “I couldn’t have done it without the support of these teachers.”

Beyond the Classroom

For Lula, education has always extended beyond textbooks. She balanced a heavy academic load—she estimates she took the most Advanced Placement courses of anyone in her senior class—with leadership roles and meaningful extracurriculars.

She played violin in the school orchestra, served as class treasurer,  was an officer in the Environmental Club, and was active in Technology Student Association and Future Business Leaders of America. But some of her most meaningful work happened outside Boyertown’s walls.

Through the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Student Visionaries program, she led a fundraising team that raised thousands of dollars for cancer research and support. “It’s the only activity that I truly got to do hands-on and meet new people,” she said. “Doing things like that makes it worth all of the work because I get to see the impact of what I’m doing.” 

Lula with some "Light the Fight" team members at Lehigh Valley Hospital visiting during the fundraising campaign. There, they got to learn about the cancer treatment process and much more about the day to day life of a cancer patient.

Not one to sit simply lounge around all summer, she attended a two week Yale summer program for high school students, where she collaborated on a project addressing diversity in medicine. Her group, composed of other high school students from around the country, wrote a children’s book designed to inspire minority students to consider careers in STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) fields. The project combined rigorous research— reviewing over 15 academic studies—with creativity and a desire to influence the next generation.

Lula also launched a unique initiative in Ethiopia, her family’s country of origin. Using technology, she helped create and advise neuroscience clubs in middle and high schools, connecting students with professors and providing resources on first aid and disease prevention strategies. The goal: to increase awareness of neurological health and eventually help to reduce the country’s shortage of neurologists.

“I was born here, but I’m fully Ethiopian,” she explained. “We were encouraged to do something that benefits our community but had to be related to global issues. I brainstormed for weeks, and eventually I created this organization because I wanted to give back to my culture.” 

Looking Back, Looking Ahead

Leaving Boyertown will not be easy. Lula admits she will miss her friends—some she has known since kindergarten—as well as her teachers. “I can’t even fathom being away from my friends who I have grown up with,” she said. “It’s absolutely insane to me. I’m definitely gonna keep reaching out.”  

Lula and her friends share their last high school experiences.

Still, she is eager to immerse herself in Yale’s vibrant community and continue her journey toward a career in neuroscience. Her long-term goal is to use science not only to advance understanding but to address disparities in global health.

Her advice to younger students reflects both her ambition and her grounded perspective: “Figure out what you want to do. Everyone has their own specialty—whether it be art or music or engineering. The most important part of life is to find what you’re passionate about and stick with it. Once you’ve found that subject you absolutely adore, it doesn’t even feel like work anymore.”

And, she added, “keep pushing in spite of setbacks, and take care of yourself. It’s just as important to rest as it is to push forward.”

A Dream Realized

For now, Lula is savoring the transition from Boyertown to New Haven, from student leader to Ivy League scholar. She knows that Yale will challenge her, but she carries with her the lessons of family, teachers, and friends who helped her get here.

“I’m thankful for everything I got to do instead of focusing only on academics and being valedictorian,” she said. “I wouldn’t change a thing.”

Setting foot on Yale’s campus, Boyertown’s Lula Mekonnen begins not just a new school year, but the next chapter of a dream she has been chasing since childhood.  

Lula's pre-school graduation demonstrated her seriousness as a student.

Years later, class officer Lula speaking at Boyertown's 2025 graduation.

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