Trinity Lodge 127 PH Scott Heckstall Scholarship

I am a first-generation Latina who has built my academic and professional path through persistence, adaptability, and a strong interest in technology and human impact. I am currently working in the tech industry, where I have developed experience in product thinking, data-driven decision-making, and understanding how AI and digital systems shape the way people interact with the world. These experiences have shaped my long-term goal of becoming a product leader at the intersection of AI, data science, and human-centered design. As a first-generation student, I have had to navigate higher education and career pathways without a traditional roadmap. This has taught me how to be resourceful, self-directed, and intentional about the opportunities I pursue. It has also strengthened my desire to not only advance professionally, but to create impact for communities that are often underrepresented in technology and higher education. In pursuit of this goal, I will be continuing my education through a graduate program at the University of California, Berkeley. The program is fully online, which allows me to remain based in New York while continuing to work full-time in the tech industry. This structure is important to me because it enables me to immediately apply what I am learning in real-world settings, while continuing to grow both academically and professionally. My career interests lie in building and shaping technology that is both innovative and responsible. I am especially passionate about AI and data systems, and how they can be designed to better reflect human needs, improve access, and reduce inequities in the way technology is deployed. I want to contribute to building products that are not only technically strong, but also thoughtful in how they impact users’ daily lives. Beyond my technical interests, I also care deeply about representation and community. As a first-generation Latina in tech, I understand how important it is to see people from similar backgrounds in positions of leadership and influence. I hope to serve as an example of what is possible while also actively supporting others who are navigating similar paths. My long-term goal is to grow into a product leadership role where I can help guide the development of AI-driven systems that are ethical, accessible, and human-centered. I want to be in a position where I can influence not only what is built, but how and for whom it is built. Receiving support through the Scott Heckstall Scholarship would help ease the financial pressure of pursuing graduate education while continuing to work and support myself in New York. More importantly, it would allow me to stay focused on my academic and professional development as I work toward building a career that blends technical expertise with meaningful impact. Ultimately, I want my career to reflect both excellence in my field and commitment to community. I am pursuing this path not only to advance myself, but to contribute to a future where technology is more inclusive, intentional, and reflective of the people it serves.

From an early age, I learned how to stay steady in the middle of chaos. Growing up, I often stepped into adult responsibilities long before I understood the weight of them. Those early experiences shaped the way I see people, struggle, and resilience, and they are the foundation of why I am pursuing a career in Human Services today. My life has been marked by moments that tested my strength, but each one has also deepened my commitment to helping others navigate hardship with dignity and hope. I am a 41‑year‑old African American woman currently earning my Bachelor of Professional Studies in Human Services at Metropolitan College of New York. My educational journey has not been traditional or easy. Over the past several years, my family has faced repeated medical crises that changed the course of my life. My father suffered a stroke in 2020, and my mother experienced one in 2022. In 2023, I survived a stroke myself. Balancing recovery, caregiving, work, and school required determination, but it also taught me how to advocate, how to listen, and how to show up for people in their most vulnerable moments. The most difficult chapter of my journey came recently. After years of fighting through severe COPD, multiple ICU stays, ventilator intubations, and two cardiac arrests, my father passed away on April 22, 2026. Losing him has been heartbreaking, but it has also strengthened my purpose. I spent countless hours in hospitals, speaking with doctors, coordinating care, and trying to understand complex medical and social service systems. I saw firsthand how overwhelming these systems can be for families who are already in crisis. I also saw how much difference it makes when someone takes the time to guide, explain, and support. That experience is a major reason I am committed to becoming a case manager and community advocate. My future goal is to work in Human Services supporting individuals and families who are navigating disability services, housing instability, medical crises, or financial hardship. I want to be the person who helps them breathe again when everything feels impossible. My lived experience has given me a deep understanding of what it means to feel unheard or overlooked, and it has also shown me the power of empathy, patience, and clear communication. These are qualities I bring naturally into my work, and they are essential in this field. Education is the next step in transforming my personal experiences into professional expertise. Through my coursework, I am learning how to combine compassion with evidence‑based practice, how to assess needs, and how to advocate effectively within systems that are often confusing or intimidating. I am committed to using my degree to create meaningful change in my community, especially for people who feel they have nowhere else to turn. Ultimately, my goal is to build a career where I can empower others to regain stability, confidence, and hope. I want to honor my father’s memory by continuing the fight he showed every day, by standing up for people who are struggling and helping them find a path forward. Completing my degree is not just a personal achievement; it is a promise to myself and to the communities I will serve. I am determined to use my education, my resilience, and my lived experience to make a lasting impact in the field of Human Services.

During my early academic life, I partook in various tech-related extracurriculars -- tech squad, a/v club, and library assistant. The most influential was the tech squad. I had the opportunity to shadow and assist the IT leaders in the building. It was an immersive experience that initiated my technical, as well as my communication and networking skills as I helped faculty with IT troubleshooting and software updates. Moreover, as tech was at the forefront of my mind, I began to consume more tech content from digital creators like Michael Reeves. One video that stands out was Reeves' take on the da Vinci robotic surgical system. Developing a belt drive gantry system along with ODrive, an open-source controller, Reeves took on this engineering challenge in a lighthearted and adventurous manner, effortlessly blending humor and technology. Beyond the entertainment, the videos not only provided a window into the development process and technical concepts, e.g., open-source, but they also helped me develop a philosophy about coding. I could see there existed a rhythm and rhyme within computer science - elegance over complexity, simplicity over embellishment, and countless applications. The self-discovery and exploration of this period not only cemented my interest in tech but also showed the infinite possibilities within computer science. Additionally, during college, I honed my practical and fundamental skills. For example, I grasped the intricacies of different coding languages (i.e., C++ and Python), software analysis and design, and computer architecture. I then took these skills and started on personal projects, such as developing a Sudoku Solver and Generator in Python utilizing the backtracking algorithm. These experiences extended my technological repertoire but also ingrained in me a love for continuous learning and imaginative solutions. Upon graduating from CUNY Hunter College with a B.A. in Computer Science, I plan to attend Graduate School while embarking on a career at the intersection of technology and finance. NYC is the perfect backdrop to dive into the fintech sector, with its vibrant financial ecosystem and thriving tech scene. During my ten-week internship at Broadridge Financial Solutions, I gained a high-level insight into the fintech industry while also developing an interest in full-stack development, cloud computing, AI, and robotic process automation in finance. Moreover, I have a job offer at Broadridge Financial Solutions in their rotational career program for this coming July, which I intend to do concurrently while earning my degree. The program is a blend of technical and business training, and after earning my M.S I plan to continue my education in business and pursue an MBA. Looking ahead, my long-term goal is to lead a team in building innovative and creative technology akin to what I witnessed during my internship. At Broadridge, as a capstone project, I researched some of the new software solutions the company had just launched. The one that caught my eye was BondAI, which harnesses AI technology to help global clientele with bond-related questions. Learning about such tangible solutions ignited in me a desire to develop similar pioneering solutions to revolutionize the fintech industry.

My name is Melanie! I would want to become a medical doctor (to be more specific a psychologist), is because I have struggled with mental health for years and have felt such a burden to both myself and those around me. I did not do the best in school and still struggle trying to find a balance, I would always turn to a close friend but sadly lost them to a suicide. By seeing a psychologist and slowly getting back on my feet, this has motivated me to help those around me and let them see it's possible to be hopeful for their future! I have always struggled financially because I come from a low income family, due to the fear of being in debt and having that idea in the back of my head that I have to pay off my student loans. My family pushes me to continue with my studies to become the family's first graduate! My parents taking out put 2/3 of their savings to let me go to an undergraduate school and still have money to pay college gives me a fear that they would have to pay for my graduate school. I am working part time as an ABA therapist to pay for my college and gain some experience in the psychology field to help me get a better job to try and support for both me and my family. Currently, I am still trying to overcome this obstacle of financial debt with college and my depression. But every-day I fight mentally and physically to make my parents proud and be the first graduate in the family and become my dream of working in the medical field and being a role model to other people, to show them it's possible to follow your dream and goal as long as you stay consistent and know that it will always get better. I hope having these experiences can show that I am still a fighter trying my best to live day by day and making my parents proud, it will be worth it knowing all the overnight shifts they worked to put me in college. Being a medical doctor would be the most rewarding job that I can think of and I'm not ready to give up on that dream, and wonder how my life would have turned out if I didn't keep fighting for it.