May 6, 2010
Maria Prado can pinpoint the exact moment when her life changed. A student at
Righetti High School at the time, she had applied for and received a $5,000
scholarship through the state-funded California Student Opportunity and Access
Program (Cal-SOAP). That taste of success motivated Prado to apply for more
scholarships and financial aid, until she realized that attending college wasn’t
just a dream, it was something she could achieve.
Prado, pictured below, is now in her second year at the University of California, Santa
Barbara, studying sociology. She is fully supported by scholarships, including
the dollars from Cal-SOAP.
“I am so grateful and lucky to have this scholarship and the opportunity to
be here,” Prado said.
Prado is one of more than 70 students who currently receive a Central Coast
Cal-SOAP scholarship, funded by the College Access Foundation of California.
Cal-SOAP is a public program that helps low-income and first-generation students
enter college and succeed there, by offering tutoring, help with college
admissions and scholarship funds. The program will award 170,000 new
scholarships to local students this year.
“The students who receive this scholarship are struggling; they may be
working full-time and at the same time trying to make it to all of their
classes. This money takes some of the pressure off so that they can focus on
graduating,” said Diana Perez, director, Cal-SOAP Central Coast.
The scholarship is renewable for each year a student attends college, a great
advantage for students such as Jose Pereyra, a sophomore at Allan Hancock
College. Pereyra used his first scholarship award to buy a laptop. This year he
spent it on books.
“Students are really in need of extra help with expenses, especially right
now,” Pereyra said. “This scholarship has truly been a blessing.”
A business administration student with dreams of opening his own business,
Pereyra admits he wouldn’t know what to do without his laptop. Allan Hancock
College nursing student Stephanie Burnett said she wouldn’t know what to do if
she had to pay for her own textbooks.
“I’m already working 25 to 30 hours a week, and my job just covers my living
expenses,” she said. “I don’t know if I could add more hours and be a full-time
student, too."
A graduate of Pioneer Valley High School, Burnett found out about the
Cal-SOAP scholarship when a representative from the organization spoke to her
class. Her scholarship money has gone towards textbooks and her student nursing
uniform.
“It’s been very helpful, it makes paying for my equipment so much less
stressful. I definitely have enough stress in my life already,” she said.
In addition to the scholarship money, Burnett has also benefited from the
advice available through the Cal-SOAP office on the Allan Hancock College Santa
Maria campus.
“The scholarship is making a difference for our students,” Perez said.
“They’re coming by our office for help and to make sure that they’re doing
everything they can to stay in college, and that’s a great thing.”
Prado is doing her best to succeed at UCSB and maintains a 3.7 GPA. Since she
received the Cal-SOAP scholarship and left for college, one of Prado’s goals has
been to encourage her younger sisters to do the same. So far, it’s working. One
of Prado’s sisters attended Hancock and recently transferred to San Jose State
University. The other is a student at Righetti High School, currently applying
to universities and for scholarships to help pay for her education.
“Every day I’m grateful that I have the opportunity to get my education. I
tell everyone I know that there are opportunities like this scholarship out
there; you just have to look for them,” Prado said.
For more information about the Central Coast Cal-SOAP scholarship program,
contact Diana Perez at (805)
922-6966 ext. 3654 or
dperez@hancockcollege.edu.
- AHC -