2023-24 Scholarship Recipients
Emily (Mikaela) Anderson is a transfer student from Cabrillo College, majoring in English/Professional and Technical Writing. After experiencing difficulties at her first high school and transferring to an alternative high school (which Mikaela says was “the best decision [she] could have made”), she graduated a semester early. At Cabrillo, she found a career pathway in the field of professional writing. Specifically, she envisions herself as a professional grant writer in the nonprofit sector. She knows that the education she is pursuing will allow her to give back to the world.
Laura Cifuentes is transferring from Cabrillo College with a major in Social Work. She comes from a low-income immigrant family and plans to work professionally with just such groups when she completes her degree at SJSU. She will be the first person in her family to attend and graduate from college. Laura currently works in a program that serves low-income families with children ages 0 -5. She is passionate about the work she does and will bring that “real-life” experience to her academic studies at SJSU.
Nathaniel (Nate) Dow is a graduating senior from Aptos High School, where he played soccer all four years, winning several awards and serving as Captain in his senior year. He also pitched in when the football team needed a kicker (having never played football previously!) and helped bring the Aptos team to second place in the league. Nate has run his own business since he was 13 and maintains a part time job. Academically, he has challenged himself by taking several Advanced Placement courses and maintained an excellent grade point average. Nate will major in Interdisciplinary Engineering with the goal of eventually creating his own business that will help others.
Mizelle Ferrer is a transfer student from Cabrillo College who will major in Sociology with a long-term goal of becoming a social worker or counselor. She and her parents are immigrants from the Philippines. She experienced racial discrimination as a child and wants to work with young people to help them feel confident in expressing their racial, sexual, and gender identities. She has worked part time at Cabrillo and has used what she has learned to help other students advance and achieve. She has also maintained a very strong grade point average.
Nadia Ramirez-Cerrillos is a graduating Senior from Aptos High School. She will be majoring in Sociology with the long-range goal of becoming a family or immigration lawyer. She comes from a low-income, single-parent household; her mother immigrated to the U.S. Nadia states that she wants “to be able to help people with things that affect their ability to make the most of this country.” Nadia played on the school volleyball team all four years and worked or volunteered part time as well. She was also active in school clubs and organizations. This busy and dedicated young woman also took Advanced Placement courses as well as a Cabrillo College course to advance her studies at SJSU.
Elin Bray-Zoreque is a graduating senior from Scotts Valley High School. He will be majoring in Justice Studies with a concentration in Criminology. He hopes to follow in the footsteps of several relatives who have had careers in law enforcement. While a student, Elin played baseball all four years on the JV and Varsity teams. He also maintained a part time job. He is proud to say that he always tried to put “student” in the term “student athlete”. He challenged himself by taking honors and International Baccalaureate courses and earned a very commendable grade point average.