Amidst the search for monetary aid during trying financial times for higher education, eight Contra Costa College students racked up $8,000 scholarships, as the winnings were announced on April 12.
The Kennedy-King Scholarship provides each student with $8,000 after he or she transfers to a four-year college, and the funds will last for a two-year period providing $4,000 a year, or $2,000 a semester.
The scholarship is awarded to 20 students throughout the district, with seven scholarships acquired by Los Medanos College students and five scholarships by Diablo Valley College students.
The scholarship recipients from CCC included: Carlos Delao, Joanna Garcia-Cabral, Kyle McCoy, Eddie Morris, Alma Perez, Sofia Ruiz, Grecia Solis and Latasha Trevillion.
“Kennedy-King is a very prestigious scholarship,” CCC Scholarship Coordinator Jimmy Cox said.
Named after Robert F. Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the Kennedy-King Memorial Scholarship Fund was formed in 1968 as a memorial to the two men who were assassinated that year.
The scholarship is for students considered “under-represented” in the California college system, such as those of African-American, Hispanic, American Indian and Pacific Islander descent, Cox said.
English major Trevillion said that not being able to work and having a daughter makes it difficult to keep up with the cost of education, but the $8,000 will help a great deal.
This district is the only one that receives this scholarship, Cox said.
Biotechnology major Carlos Delao, who plans to transfer to UC Davis in the fall, said these scholarships give students more opportunities, encourage them to learn more, and give them financial support to achieve their goals.
“The Kennedy-King Scholarship is available in case there is not sufficient financial assistance, and with these fee increases, who doesn’t need help with that?” Garcia-Cabral said.
Cox said this scholarship is not easily won, because it has a very rigorous application process and students have to pay attention to all the details.
The award ceremony will be held Friday night at the Concord Hilton and individual tickets cost $75. All the funds during the ceremony will raise money for additional scholarships, he said.
Contact Alexandra Waite at awaite.advocate@gmail.com
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