Laura Estrada
Lewis and Clarke
2012 Alumni
"My college journey is going good, this semester I am trying different courses like intro to rhetoric and media, might be a possible major, entrepreneurship and innovation, drawing 1, and into to perspectives in statistics. This semester I wanted to get out of my comfort zone, so I joined the rugby team and it is intense. This semester I went to my first college outdoor trip, in which we went river rafting. It was so much fun and scary at the same time because the rapids were a bit scary. I might go kayaking, so I am excited for that. I feel like this semester I am definitely managing my time better and I try to get head start on my homework. That's how my college life is going this semester.
Esperanza has helped me pursue my college goals because it helped me financially. If it weren't for the Esperanza Scholarship I would not have the money to pay for my college tuition. I would have been forced to take out a bigger loan than the one I took out, but thankfully Esperanza covered some of the gap I owed. Esperanza was the first scholarship that I have received, so for me this was an amazing opportunity. I started crying of emotion because I applied to many other scholarships but they all said no, but when I read the congratulations from Esperanza Scholarship Foundation Dollars for Scholars I was so happy because it was my first scholarship. I am still thankful because it helped me through my first year of college financially."
Zulema Isais
University of California, Riverside
2012 Alumni
"I remember my first day of college. I felt like I was starting over, I was beginning a new life because this time I had a purpose and a dream that I had to work hard for. My head was filled with questions; I wondered what my professor would be like and what obstacles were ahead of me. But overall I remember being eager to learn and to experience new things.
I never knew how beautiful and complex a journey could be. I also did not expect to make so many decisions. Choosing my major was one of those decisions that I knew had to take a lot of thought. I had to know for sure where my passion was. I chose to fall in love with science, not just because the great things I could learn but because this major would one day make me a great doctor. I am going to be a doctor, I am going to one day establish my own clinic to help low income patients. I want to give them affordable healthcare. I will be attending The University of California Riverside where I will pursue my dream.
If it was not for the Esperanza Scholarship Foundation Dollars for Scholars scholarship I could not have made this far. My mother who is the main provider of our family, can not help me financially with college, I have another sister who attends college as well and we had to struggle paying for college on our own. We had to pay full tuition for school due to our citizenship status. My sister and I decided to look for help, we searched for scholarships that we could possibly be eligible for, it was not many but what ever we had was of great help. The Esperanza Scholarship Foundation Dollars for Scholars scholarship gave me a chance to pay my tuition and buy my books. It was of great help because with out it I would not have able to keep pursuing my dream. One day I hope to give back to the Esperanza because I want to give hope to other students just as they have for me."
Radhika Patel
University of California, Irvine
2012 Alumni
"I am currently a Biological Sciences major at University of California, Irvine. It has been a wonderful first year being here. I can't believe that it is my second year already. It was nothing like I expected. I thought that it was going to be hard and I would have a lot of homework and no time to have fun but in reality you have time to spend with friends and hang out and study as long as you know how to manage your time correctly and keep your priorities straight. It can get overwhelming at times but the key is to take a break and come back to it later. My first year in college went by really fast. It was a lot of studying and hard work but I am glad to be here. Majoring in Biological Sciences opens a new chapter in my life. I have so many possibilities for the future. Each year something new interests me and I change my career pathway but in the end it ends up somewhere in the medical field. I came into college thinking of becoming a pediatrician then somewhere down the line I thought about becoming a radiologist but now I am thinking of becoming an optometrist. I am planning on going to medical school somewhere in the future. I do not know where life is going to take me but I do know that there are many opportunities and I would like to explore a little before settling for something that interests me because every day I find something that interests me that I did not know. Esperanza Scholarship Foundation Dollars for Scholars has helped me for my first year of college in achieving my future goals. College is not cheap and I am glad I was chosen to be a recipient for this scholarship. I had applied for a lot of scholarships starting junior year and had not been chosen for any of them. Then during senior year, I applied for more scholarships including Esperanza. I was really excited when I found out that i was a recipient of the Esperanza scholarship. It was my first scholarship that I have ever received. Many students dread about paying for textbooks for each class because of how expensive they are. I am thankful that the $1000 allowed me to pay for books I needed for class during my first year. I saw an opportunity and took it and hopefully I can continue to seek out opportunities that will help me reach my goal of going to medical school."
Raul Fonseca
University of California, Los Angeles
2012 Alumni
"My college journey is going great so far. I have met many amazing people and I have learned to value education even more. Attending college has been one of the best decisions of my life because it has given me the opportunity to pursue whichever career I choose. In high school I always dreamed of going to college but I was never sure how I would pay for it. My parents never had much money but they did everything in their power to lead me and my sisters down the correct path towards a college education. I am very thankful to the Esperanza Scholarship Foundation for believing in me and making my dream to go to college a reality. I want to thank the ESF board members and sponsors for helping fund my education. It is also encouraging to see other ESF scholars who have so much passion and drive to be the best they can be. I want to congratulate the past, current and future ESF scholars for getting this far and I wish them luck in there future endeavors. My goals are to graduate from UCLA and possibly attain a masters in accounting. My career goal is to be an accountant and eventually maybe be a CEO or CFO of a major corporation. Once again I want to thank ESF for all you have done for me and I hope you continue helping students and making their college dreams become a reality."
Laura Isais
University of California, Los Angeles
2012 Alumni
"The Esperanza Scholarship Foundation has been a blessing for me. It truly is hope for all students out there who don't have the money to afford college. Thanks to the generous donations of the scholarship I have been able to attend college for 2 semesters and I had my books paid for as well. My dream of becoming an Immigration lawyer seems to be closer and closer. I will soon be transferring out of Chaffey to UCLA and am very grateful for the opportunity the foundation gave to me by giving me the scholarship. I hope to one day be able to give back to my community just as they did for me. My story began in a little town called Tepalcatepec Michuacan in Mexico I was born with a twin sister who has been by my side through thick and thin. My father was a drug addict and my mother was a struggling house wife. The four of us lived in a small room no mattress to sleep on and no furniture at all. After my parents had nothing left to give to me and my sister not even a piece of bread to eat they decided it was time for change. After that we came to America I was eight years old and excited to see my new home. We were finally doing well and were able to have a decent way of life, and afford some commodities. However I experienced a tremendous amount of racism because I could not speak English and neither did my parents. The Worst part was when a teacher yelled at me and said "This is America little girl you can't speak Spanish here!" That phrase I understood and it hurt but it did not break me. I could not defend my self then because I could not speak English, but the one thing I got from that was my passion. I found that I wanted to stand up to people like her not only for me but for my family and for my community. I thank her for helping me feel that way because today I am on the road to become an Immigration lawyer to stand up and defend those who cant defend themselves. I hope to one day inspire, help, and stand up for my community and show every one that one can overcome every obstacle in their path all you have to do is find the passion you have, strive and never give up."
Maria Ramos
California State University, San Bernardino
2011 Alumni
"The Esperanza Scholarship Foundation Dollar for Scholars awarded me my first scholarship during my senior year at Pomona High School in the spring of 2011. As an undocumented student, my biggest fear was not being able to pursue a college degree due to the financial limitation and resources available to me. However, The Esperanza Scholarship poured out hope into my heart and build my first step of interested in attending Chaffey College. The main reason why I am motivated to serve in my community and work for the Espernaza Scholarship Foundation Dollars for Scholars is: my community leaders' influences. Today, I am honored and blessed to remind myself that my success in transferring out of Chaffey College into California State University of San Bernardino comes from leaders who invest in my community."