mgid:hcx:content:mtvtr3s.com:e98a3a3a-bd8b-4669-a26e-000a91232f52 Tue, 04 Oct 2011 07:54:00 EDT
Odalmy and Luis are among the 7 remarkable students who received the 2011 Hispanic Heritage Youth Awards presented by the Hispanic Heritage Foundation. One recipient was selected in each category from hundreds of regional selectees who were selected from 10,000 applicants. Each has an inspiring story to share and we are proud to honor them as Tr3s Agentes de Cambio. Cancer is a topic that Odalmy Molina is very familiar with. Two members of her family, her father and her brother, have been afflicted with this disease. She longs to one day find a cure for cancer. Odalmy is currently involved with many cancer related organizations such as the American Cancer Society, for which she serves as the youth co-chair. She is also involved with a “Teens against Cancer” Relay for Life team. She is a spectacular student as well, maintaining a perfect 4.0 GPA even after taking 20 AP classes. In addition to her other achievements, Odalmy has co-published original research on analgesic peptide gene transfer. Her words tell of the greatness Latinos can achieve, she envisions “Hispanics as millions of great neurons, unified in a single brain, capable of unraveling all its potential across different fields.” Luis Ortiz’s father once told him that he should go beyond simply finding a job for himself but rather, help his community by creating jobs for other Latinos. Due to his father’s influence, Luis developed a passion for business which led him to enroll in challenging, business oriented math classes throughout high school. He has participated in various programs designed to improve social skills for emerging business leader including: the National Hispanic Recognition program and the Student Emerging Leaders Program. Luis, who is of Columbian descent, is Captain of his high school varsity soccer team and the Assistant Coach of his school’s Bocce Ball team which is made up entirely of special education students and students who haven’t played a varsity sport, “Seeing these kids have the opportunity to play at a competitive level against other schools and just have so much fun and just being a part of that is really rewarding.”]]> mgid:hcx:content:mtvtr3s.com:f734ae45-7076-4016-ad27-c43b9a721641 Tue, 04 Oct 2011 07:50:00 EDT
Melissa, Catarina and Jose are among the 7 remarkable students who received the 2011 Hispanic Heritage Youth Awards presented by the Hispanic Heritage Foundation. One recipient was selected in each category from hundreds of regional selectees who were selected from 10,000 applicants. Each has an inspiring story to share and we are proud to honor them as Tr3s Agentes de Cambio. It comes to no surprise that Melissa Fich is the 2011 recipient of the Education Award. Melissa mentors young readers at her local library through the Read and Lead program that pairs high school students with elementary students. In the past, Melissa has organized various book drives to benefit Schools in her home state of New Jersey. Melissa served as the Editor-in-Chief to two of her school’s magazines. Additionally, she served as the editor to a monthly newsletter and as head editor of her school newspaper’s sports page. Melissa is currently attending Columbia University where she plans to major in English. Melissa looks to the future optimistically, “It’s not just recognition for what I accomplished so far, but also support and motivation for what I hope to achieve in the future.” The recipient of the 2011 Community Service Award, Catarina Lopez, is the epitome of selfless determination. She has set an inspiring and noteworthy goal of completing 4,000 community service hours by her 25th birthday. Her goal is well underway as she has logged countless hours helping her community already. Catarina, who is of Mexican and Puerto Rican descent, spends most of her time working as a teacher’s aide at Peeble’s Elementary School. Catarina also volunteers with the transportation and nutrition departments during her school’s registration period. Additionally, Catarina works with her school district’s bus barn. Her selfless character earned her the title “Community Service Lieutenant” from her school. Catarina encourages volunteerism among her peers, “I want to set a good example. I want everyone to be able to go out and volunteer.” Last but certainly not least is the recipient of the Engineering and Math Award, Jose Antonio. From a very early age Jose’s mom advised him that if he wanted to get further in life, it would be through education; Jose’s 4.22 GPA shows that he certainly took her advice. Jose was named the National Hispanic Recognition Program Scholar for placing in the top two percent of Hispanic SAT test takers. Jose is currently studying Civil Engineering at Stanford University; he hopes to see more Latinos excel in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math.]]> mgid:hcx:content:mtvtr3s.com:4be3cea0-ddcc-4258-8249-c57e5667d1ba Thu, 15 Sep 2011 09:10:00 EDT
Captain Richard Gomez currently serves as an Assistant Professor of Military Science and Scholarship and Enrollment Officer at Fordham University's Army ROTC. Last year, Captain Gomez awarded over $1 million dollars in scholarship money to students in need from across the New York City area. Captain Gomez was born in Queens, NY where he lived the first 21 years of his life with his mother and twin brother. His interest in the Army first grew through the Junior ROTC program at Francis Lewis High School and extended into his college career at Hofstra University where he received a 3 year scholarship from the Army ROTC program. Captain Gomez graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Geography and was commissioned as an Engineer Lieutenant. He served as a platoon leader in Bravo Company 2nd Engineer Battalion Camp Castle Republic of Korea. Captain Gomez then served on the Division staff as the Facilities Operation Manager for the 1st Cavalry Division Ft Hood TX. He was deployed to Operation Iraqi Freedom 06-08 as the Construction and Operations Manager for Multi-National Division Baghdad. His awards and decorations include the Army Commendation Medal, the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, the Iraqi Campaign Medal, the Korean Defense Medal and the Parachutist Badge.]]> mgid:hcx:content:mtvtr3s.com:07430f8d-a832-4af6-8195-80678b1c8c45 Tue, 02 Aug 2011 05:53:00 EDT
We are pleased to honor, Devin Valencia, the “Get Schooled” College Affordability Challenge Winner, as Tr3s’ Agente de Cambio. Applying to college can be stressful, but getting the money that you need to go to college shouldn’t have to be. However, many students say they find applying for financial aid difficult and complicated, and up to 2 million students a year who may be eligible do not apply because they are unaware of the financial aid opportunities available to them. The “Get Schooled” College Affordability Challenge was created to bridge this gap, encouraging students to design digital tools to simplify the financial aid process. Devin Valencia stepped up to the challenge creating Connect Fund, the first-ever social media tool designed to help students navigate through the financial aid maze. Connect Fund is a Facebook application that automatically presents users with a tailored list of scholarship and financial aid opportunities based on their demographic information that is already provided through their Facebook profiles. Connect Fund will also offer students a step-by-step guide on how to apply for scholarships, grants and loans, as well as enable users to tap into their Facebook friends to share information about sources of aid. Devin’s personal story is inspiring in itself. Devin’s parents came to the United States from Mexico and did not go beyond high school, instead working so that they could provide for their family. Devin is the first member of her family to graduate college and she hopes Connect Fund will help others do the same. “I’m the first person in my immediate family to actually attend college and graduate. I’m normal, a normal girl from a normal town, just knowing that I can inspire anyone who is watching this makes me feel proud of my accomplishments and of myself” she said. Congratulations to Devin Valencia! We hope her story inspires you to become an Agente de Cambio! Connect Fund will launch by January 2012, please stay tuned to Tr3s.com for updates.]]> mgid:hcx:content:mtvtr3s.com:7b4d09a4-fc1a-4159-9add-f4e6c98e069a Wed, 29 Sep 2010 03:03:00 EDT
Carlos is a Senior Corps Member with City Year New York. Born in Nicaragua, Carlos and his family moved to the United States when he was 9 years old. Initially, it was very difficult for Carlos to adjust to the American lifestyle – for starters he did not speak English making it nearly impossible for him to stay ahead in school and make friends. His family also struggled to get by - his mother and stepfather each working two and three jobs at a time in order to make ends meet. Carlos feels very fortunate that in 10th grade, he had a social studies teacher named Mr. Mixon who took a special interest in him and took extra time with him and ultimately helped Carlos see his own potential and how to realize it. After that course ended, Mr. Mixon continued on as Carlos' mentor and helped him select courses, get involved in extracurricular activities and become informed about the college application process. Carlos attended Cornell University as a Gates Millennium Scholar and graduated two years ago with a degree in Economics. In his words: "After college, I decided that it was my duty to give back and make a difference in the lives of others. More specifically, to be what Mr. Mixon was for me to another child. City Year was the perfect place for me." He feels especially connected to the students he serves because so many are, like himself, immigrants for whom English is not the first language and come from his same socioeconomic background: "When I look into the eyes of the students that I work with, I see myself. Not too long ago I was in their shoes. The least I can do is to give back and make them see that education is the gateway to better opportunities, to the world."]]>