Hacia Delante! Scholarship

As a Business and Finance Major I will be able to use my education to help my community move Hacia Delante by demonstrating that graduating as an undocumented immigrant student during a time of immigration reform is not only possible, but impactful! My academic journey will not only be a testament to resilience and perseverance but a tool that proves that education can be a powerful tool for social and economical changes. With my major I aspire to pursue a job as a freelance Financial Planner and Advisor, with a focus on helping families, especially within the Latino community, in managing their wealth and retirement. Growing up in an immigrant household I’ve witnessed my dad work long hours for very low wages, which often lead to my parents struggling with paying the bills, and maintaining financial stability. Seeing them constantly stress and worry about paying the rent or if they’d have enough money left over to survive left me with a deep sense of responsibility and pushed me to make sure that no family has to live in constant financial fear. Even today, I worry about my parent’s retirement plans knowing that they, like many other immigrant families, lacked access to traditional financial resources. I understand that these challenges come from the lack of financial guidance, lack of education, and very limited resources available to immigrants who arrive in a this country alone, facing fear, isolation, and uncertainty. I don’t want the immigrant community to struggle financially any longer and hope that I can help these families break the cycle of poverty and survival. Without a social security these families are excluded from retirement plans, medical care, government aid and other helpful financial systems. My goal is to help immigrant and low-income families create financial systems that work for them and their income. With budgeting, financial planning, and education, I hope to help these families build emergency savings, plan for retirement, and develop healthier relationships with money. Growing up, I saw how my families financial struggles and lack of financial education prevented us from learning how to budget, save, or plan ahead keeping us trapped in the poverty line. If it weren’t for these challenges, it would have never motivated me to persue higher education in finance in order to stop this pattern. I hope to empower families to break this cycle, move beyond survival, and build stable financial futures rooted in hope. By helping these families create a financial system that works for them we’re able to push financial breakthrough onto future generations ensuring that our Latino community prospers and never has to face lack again!

Growing up with a single mother and being an immigrant in a vast world beyond my understanding, I understood one thing from a young age: financial hardships. I watched my mother work day and night, week after week, pushing herself to the point where her health condition became irreparable. To me, this was the reality of things: families working paycheck to paycheck, taking any opportunity to survive. But the reality wasn't like this for everyone. This realization encouraged me to pursue a degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in finance, as I eventually want to help people just like me make stronger financial decisions, opening more doors for future generations, just as my mom opened the door to mine by migrating so that I have a better future. My ambitions of giving back began at a young age, but my actions began at College Corps, where I have completed 450 hours of community service, in which I contributed to climate action, food insecurity, and K-12 support. These experiences have built me while also allowing me to make a positive change. My commitment to service extends beyond volunteering, as I also serve as a student leader through my role as ASU Treasurer, where I work to support student organizations and help minorities be represented on campus. One of the initiatives I am most proud of was a leadership workshop I organized called “How to Tie a Tie.” While on the surface it may seem simple, the event represented something deeper to me. Many minorities, including myself, have not been raised around professional environments, but rather hardworking and honest environments. What I wanted this workshop to provide was confidence for students from all kinds of backgrounds, confidence in interviews and presentations, as I know we all aspire to have professional careers and enter spaces that reflect such. Through this workshop, I wanted students to understand that they belong in those spaces and that success is possible regardless of their background. Thanks to securing donations for new ties, I managed to help students who are just like me to take their first step toward a confident professional career while also making them aware of the resources and support available to students who strive for success. With my major, I hope to motivate and support underserved communities. I grew up understanding that money is important and that not everyone is equal in a system where low-income families are left behind, which causes an unbreakable cycle of poverty. This is what I strive to break. I want to help families with knowledge, as I understand that the lack of it creates barriers and difficulties that impede stability. Although this may appear as a small contribution, I believe it to be very impactful as it will create the foundation of a lasting change. My long-term goal is to have a business where I can serve the underserved communities while also helping those individuals improve their financial literacy. I want to create opportunities that I wish I had for those who are limited by financial hardships. To me, scholarships such as Hacia Delante give opportunities that prove you're not alone, which is what I aspire to do with my career. Whether this is through financial education, community service or student leadership, I hope to empower communities and individuals to keep moving forward and continue fighting so that these circumstances that limit us don’t define our future.

When I was younger, I remember we lived in an apartment complex. The people in that apartment complex were more than just neighbors, they were our resources to navigating this new world. It was the neighbors who taught me to ride a bicycle, speak English, and fill out my first job application. After high school, I thought I couldn’t afford community college, until a neighbor told me about AB540, the California Assembly bill that made it possible for non-citizens to pay in state tuition. It was a neighbor who had taken a DACA workshop who taught me to fill out my renewal forms, for free so we wouldnt have to pay lawyer fees. They told me that it was our job to make sure our access was shared. For so long, knowledge and community were words that were almost synonymous in my mind. I knew that if I didnt have an answer, I could knock on someones’ door who would. In 2022, I worked at starbucks. We heard about partners in Buffalo, New York unionizing, and wanted to know how they did it and what obstacles they faced during the process. We had the idea to reach out to them via Twitter, and before we knew it we had group chats and zoom calls set up, sharing information from one side of the country to the other. With their help and the help of local community organizers, we were able to win our union election, unanimously. Growing up in this country, doors are closed on us every day. For a single person, it can be made impossible to force that door open and slide through. When you have your community pushing with you, your strength is magnified. Each obstable becomes lighter when the weight is shared. It’s important to realize that with community the gain is magnified as well, because one persons’ sucess spreads into the success of the community. I want to get my degree in Sociology and find my niche in community organizing, to give back into the knowledge that has built me into the person I am today. I know that the path I have been on is unconventional, but I’m grateful for every speed bump and renavigation I had to do, because they led me to opportunities to grow and learn to rely on and trust others. I know as I get older and gain more knowlege my role in my community will change, and I am excited to have more to give back with every lived experience.

was born and raised in Senegal, where access to quality education and opportunities is limited for many, especially young girls. I was raised by a single mother, after my father abandoned us when I was still very young. I am his only daughter, and yet, he chose to walk away. While that rejection hurt deeply, it also lit a fire within me. I refused to let that pain become a chain. Instead, I transformed it into a source of strength. Through every difficulty—financial struggles, emotional wounds, and lack of support—I held on to one truth: I must move forward, and when I do, I will open the door for others. I chose to study forensic biology, not just because I love science, but because I see it as a powerful tool for justice. In my community and across Africa, too many women and children suffer in silence from abuse, violence, and injustice. Often, their voices are ignored because there is no evidence, no support, and no system willing to fight for them. I want to change that. With a degree in forensic biology, I plan to build capacity in criminal investigation and forensic science in Senegal, especially for cases involving domestic violence, sexual abuse, and human rights violations. Education will give me the skills and credibility I need to make real change. I want to return home and create training programs for young scientists, advocate for more government investment in forensic labs, and work with the legal system to ensure evidence-based justice. But my vision goes beyond science. Once I complete my undergraduate studies, I hope to continue with a master’s degree in international human rights law. Combining science and law will allow me to not only analyze evidence but also advocate for policy change, represent victims, and participate in international efforts to protect the rights of the oppressed. My ultimate goal is to work with global institutions like the United Nations or the International Criminal Court, representing voiceless communities and defending those who are most vulnerable. But even beyond institutions and systems, hacia delante also means grassroots change. I want to create community programs that educate girls about their rights, offer mental health support for survivors of abuse, and teach families how to build homes based on love and respect—not fear and silence. I want to show that a girl from a low-income background, abandoned by her father, can rise and lead—and help others rise with her. Every scholarship, every lesson, and every opportunity I receive is not just for me. It’s for my future children, my neighbors, and every girl who watches me and says, “If she can do it, maybe I can too.” That is what hacia delante means to me—walking forward with purpose, carrying the hopes of many, and leaving the door wide open behind me. In the end, education is not just about personal success. It’s about impact. It’s about healing. It’s about justice. And through science, law, and service, I am committed to helping my community move hacia delante—stronger, wiser, and freer.