"Jessica. Present! Nick. Present! Za-sorry, how do you pronounce that?”

students who have “unique” names OFTEN face A COMMON STRUGGLE. However, there is more to these names than just mispronunciation. THEIR NAME IS THEIR IDENTITY.

“Zoya means loving and flower in Persian,” Zoya said. “I appreciate my unique name] because if you have a friend named Emma, you know [so many more] Emmas, because it’s such a common name, but there’s only one Zoya.”

“My name in Arabic means blooming flower and in Persian it means princess,” Zarah said. “I just like how my name is really cultural, and how it’s a part of me; it makes me me.”

“Aiman means the righteous one,” Aiman said. “I love that [my name is] unique and that I'm the only one in the school who's named that. People can remember me easier.”