By Maddie Peloff ’16

On December 18, after months of preparation, Assistant Secondary Administrator Sapna Chaudhry became a U.S. citizen. Chaudhry, who was previously a permanent resident in the United States maintained her Indian citizenship but is finally able to call herself a U.S. citizen as well.

The process for obtaining citizenship began for Chaudhry in July of 2015 when she filed for citizenship. Two months later, she was called in for fingerprinting and photographing. There, they gave her a booklet and CD with 100 questions to study for her interview. Chaudhry reviewed constantly, listening to the CD again and again on her way to and from work. She reached the point where she knew every answer to every question. On December 4, Chaudhry attended an interview where she answered ten history and civics questions and completed a reading and writing section. By the end of the interview, Chaudhry had successfully passed the citizenship process and her oath ceremony was scheduled for December 18.

Today, Chaudhry is a proud American citizen. She has her American flag from her oath ceremony proudly hanging on her office door and can’t wait to take advantage of the benefits of citizenship. “I am excited to be able to vote in the upcoming 2016 election,” said Chaudhry. “And also … apply for a U.S. passport so that I can travel, because I love to travel.”

Chaudhry is also excited about the opportunities her citizenship opens up for her two sons. One of whom is 18 and must file for citizenship on his own, but the other, who is 16, receives citizenship status under her name.

Chaudhry’s citizenship process was very smooth, efficient and relatively quick. However, it did require a lot of work and time. Despite this, “it really feels good to be at this point where I can call myself a U.S. citizen,” she said. “All the struggles and the hardships that we went through as a family [were] worth it at the end.”