>> CLIENT PROFILE ZERIN Zerin was a freshman in high school when her family moved from their home in Bangladesh to the United States. “My parents wanted us to have education and career opportunities that they never had,” she recounts. Soon after her family moved into a small, overcrowded home with another family, Zerin’s grades started to suffer. Zerin enrolled in New Futures, a family advocacy program funded by KCHA, and expressed her challenges to the counselors. The program connected Zerin’s family with KCHA’s workforce housing program, and, after a short wait, they moved into KCHA’s Windsor Heights apartments in SeaTac. “When you feel stable, you can focus on other things,” Zerin affirms. By having a stable place to sleep and study, Zerin quickly transformed from a struggling freshman to one her high school recognized as the Most Improved Student of the Year. Now a junior, she is taking college courses in biology and working as a tutor in the very program that assisted her family, New Futures. “I love working with the kids, and acting as a role model for them,” Zerin says proudly. “I now feel like my dream of becoming a pediatrician is something I can achieve. I cannot say thank you enough to KCHA.” 2017 ANNUAL REPORT 13