Image: Seven of the Words Alive Westreich Scholarship Students sit in a row displaying their awards at last year's Scholarship Ceremony.
While Ulises Izúcar slept at various homeless shelters across the city, college classes weren’t the dreams dancing around in his head. In fact, Ulises wasn’t sure he’d even graduate from high school. Knowing that the two most important people in his life, his mother and older sister, had both dropped out of school, Ulises said he didn’t think his life could be much different.
“It’s exponentially easier to conform to the standard set by those before you,” he wrote in his scholarship application.
Determined to write a different ending to his story, not only will Ulises start college at Point Loma Nazarene University this fall — he’ll do so armed with scholarship awards he earned by going above and beyond.
One of those awards is the Words Alive Westreich Scholarship (WAWS). San Diego philanthropist Ruth Westreich created the Words Alive Westreich Scholarship Program in 2007, with the first scholarships awarded the following year. The program awards scholarships to Words Alive Adolescent Book Group (ABG) program participants to support them in their pursuit of higher education at the college or vocational level.
Unlike other scholarship programs, which typically fund only tuition, books and educational supplies, each WAWS recipient is eligible to receive funds to cover the cost of rent, food, childcare, clothing, travel and other living expenses. Additionally, the program matches each recipient with a mentor, who meets with their student throughout the school year, providing guidance, direction, and often times, a “shoulder” to lean on.
Words Alive is proud to announce that we have awarded $36,000 in scholarships for the 2017-18 academic year. Each of the 13 WAWS recipients will receive a scholarship award ranging from $500 to $5,000. Three WAWS scholars will receive an additional $2,000 scholarship from our Julia & Zoey Shenkman Scholarship Fund.
The 2017-2018 Words Alive Westreich Scholarship Program recipients are: Zaphire Alonso-Duarte (San Diego City College), Destiny Frost (California State University - Bakersfield), Dezarae Frost (San Jose State), Rose Gonzalez (San Diego State University), Diana Gonzalez-Soto (San Diego City College), Felicia Hurtado (San Diego City College), Ulises Izúcar (Point Loma Nazarene University), Zaira Martinez (San Diego City College), Venecia Montes (UC Davis), Alicia Osuna Garcia (San Diego City College), Daimeon Rodriguez (San Diego City College), Itzel Vega (San Diego City College) and Domminiece Willis (Southwestern College).
Like Ulises, each of these students have overcome tremendous adversity to make it where they are today. Some of those challenges include: homelessness, familial drug and alcohol abuse, teen pregnancy and juvenile delinquency.
Please join us on Monday, August 21st, 2017 from 5:30-7 p.m. for our WAWS Award Ceremony, where we will recognize these 13 remarkable students. The WAWS Award Ceremony will be held in the Shiley Special Event Suite at the San Diego Central Library, 330 Park Boulevard. Photographers welcome. Please RSVP here!