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Getting into the college of your choice is one thing—paying for it is another. But thanks to the generosity of more than 140 local donors and organizations, that challenge will be a little easier for many local high school graduates this year.
More than 450 individual awards were made, ranging from the $250 Brick Ehret-Golf Memorial Scholarship, given to Hollister High School student Daniella Arias, to Alexandra Gallo’s $30,000 Rotary Foundation Global Grant Scholarship, which funds graduate-level coursework for students pursuing careers in fields that create “sustainable, measurable change.”
According to Hollister High School College and Career Center Specialist Mary Andrade, it takes more than great grades to attract the eye of the scholarship committees.
“A lot of these organizations are not looking for that top student,” she said. “They are looking for that well-rounded student who can manage their time, still have amazing grades, but be able to give back.”
Gallo certainly fits that description, according to Larry Barr, past president of the Hollister Rotary. She had already earned two Rotary Club scholarships before leaving Hollister High School. Her work at Fresno State University earned her the university’s Presidential Medal of Honor as the top all-around student.
From there, she served on the California Strategic Growth Council, worked at the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Environmental Protection Agency, and led the design of a $2 billion initiative to direct resources to the most marginalized communities in the U.S.
Barr said he first met Gallo, who just completed her master’s degree in public policy from Oxford University, when he was a youth service advisor for the Rotary Interact Club.
“She was average in high school,” Barr said, “but at Fresno, she absolutely blossomed. It’s the first time anyone from here has won the Global Grant Scholarship. Pretty remarkable for a kid from Hollister, right? She’s very determined to advance herself in every way”
For Andrade, Hollister High graduate Kaden Rodriguez exemplifies the same kind of drive in academic and personal accomplishments.
“The highest number of scholarships that students receive is maybe 11 or 12,” she said. “Kaden got 21 of the 50 or so he applied for. In my eight years here, I’ve never had a student win that many. As they came in, I started to wonder, ‘What is so great about this kid?’”
Looking at the list of activities Rodriguez sent with each application, Andrade found the answer: while most students have a one-page list, his took three pages to encompass his outside interests.
Andrade said, “I asked him, ‘When do you sleep?’ Because he’s involved in FFA, does wrestling and baseball, has a job, goes to Costa Rica during the summer to help the handicapped, is involved with the Downtown Association and the FoodBank, among other things.”
Rodriguez said he approached the list of available scholarships not by choosing the ones that offered the largest awards, but by focusing on those in areas that interested him the most.
“You have to take into account the people who look at the applications,” he said. “They are going to look at them and see who fits their criteria best, and what you are the most connected to. Those are the ones to put time and thought into because that’s what is important to you.”
The scholarships Rodriguez received ranged from $500 to $2,500 and came from organizations including the San Benito County Realtors Association, Young Farmers and Ranchers, the Hollister Exchange Club, Hollister Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9242, San Benito County Saddle Horse Show and the San Benito County Cattlewomen.
Rodriguez will be attending California State University, Chico in the fall, an obvious choice for someone who is interested in pursuing a career in agricultural business.
“I toured the campus,” he said, “and I really fell in love with their ag program. They have a very big farm with beef, swine and lambs, and there’s lots of fishing and hiking in the area, things that I enjoy doing. And I hope to seek out more scholarships as I go through college.”
Locally awarded scholarships
Hollister High School students were awarded 426 scholarships, totaling $478,640, from 121 funds and organizations. The Hollister Rotary Club was the top donor, giving 29 scholarships of $1,000 apiece.
The next highest amounts came from the Hollister Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9242 ($20,000), Hollister Prep School Committee College ($19,840), the Jenny and Henry Solorio Memorial ($19,000), and the San Benito County Chamber Foundations Pathways Empowerment ($19,000).
Anzar High School students were awarded 35 scholarships totaling $49,000 from 16 funds and organizations. The top donor was Willis Construction, which gave $17,000 to nine students, followed by Teresie White Memorial Scholarship ($6,000) and the San Juan Bautista Rotary Club ($5,000).
Top recipients include Miranda Lopez with seven scholarships totaling $10,000, William Mejia with six scholarships totaling $6,500, and Felix Io with four scholarships totaling $6,500.
Four San Andreas Continuation School graduates received 13 awards: Marley Gila (Spanish Lodge), Julissa Hernandez (Hollister Lions Club, Latino Coalition, Veterans of Foreign Wars), Arturo Martinez (Hollister Lions Club, Rob and Jenny Bernosky, Eric Kristoffersen) and Julissa Villarreal (Hollister Lions Club, Latino Coalition, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Women’s Club of Hollister, Celeste Toledo-Bocanegra and Stacie McGrady).
The Community Foundation of San Benito County oversees 40 scholarships, many of which are represented in the Hollister High total. A total of $150,500 was awarded to 147 recipients from 40 scholarship funds.
Kinship Seneca awarded four scholarships: the $3,000 William Medeiros Jr. Scholarship to Natalia Pacheco and three $1,500 scholarships to Janessa Rose Esparza, Johan Emanuel Zaragoza and Evelyn Guadalupe Diaz.
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