Douglas County welcomes 10 BOLD civic‑engagement fellows from Bosnia and Herzegovina

The Douglas County Board of Commissioners on Sept. 9 received a delegation of 10 students from Bosnia and Herzegovina who are in Omaha as part of the U.S. Department of State’s BOLD Civic Engagement Fellowship hosted by the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

Val McPherson of UNO introduced the group and described the program as a five‑week exchange; McPherson noted program links to longer‑running International Visitor Leadership initiatives. “It has been my distinct pleasure, to have gotten to know them over the last approximately 3 and a half weeks,” McPherson said.

Each fellow gave a brief introduction to the commissioners. Speakers and their stated affiliations included Lamia Lapa, student of educational studies; Amina Kruppalia, student at the Sarajevo Music Academy and a member of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s women’s national ice hockey team; Ismar Ejkonich, governing board member of the Youth Council Federation Bosnia Herzegovina; Nikola (surname not provided), an IT student and piano player; Ahmed Amirtich, who described natural resources in Bihaech; Lana Zocco, a mechatronics student; Adna Muic, a legal intern and Young European Ambassador from the Western Balkans; Sara Malinovich, a civil engineering student; Hannah Molasmo, a pharmacy‑bound student interested in health‑care access; and Lehi Sadavich, a diplomacy student and competitive swimmer.

Commissioner Kavanaugh thanked McPherson and called the program a valuable opportunity: “We appreciate every year when you bring us young political leaders from around the world,” he said, encouraging the visitors to study democratic governance. Commissioners thanked the delegation for visiting and noted plans to meet Omaha’s new mayor following the presentation.

No board action was required; the presentation was listed as item 6.a on the agenda.