A trio of St. Paul High School seniors was recognized recently with scholarships that will help them advance in their educations.
Sumayni Izquierdo Rodriguez, Estrella Saldivar Garcia and Gabriela Herrera-Manuel have each been awarded a 2024-25 Ford Scholars Program scholarship.
“The Ford Scholars Program is a highly selective scholarship that awards students from Oregon and Siskiyou County, California, who are planning to complete a four-year degree at a college in their home state,” a release from the organization said. “The scholarship amount varies by student, providing 90% of unmet need, up to $40,000 a year.”
The release added that to earn the scholarship, “the students selected have shown exceptional potential and motivation to succeed in college. They have also demonstrated care for their community, a strong work ethic, leadership potential and an overall outstanding character.”
Rodriguez welcomed the award.
“To be given the opportunity of receiving a Ford Scholars Program Scholarship is more than just the possibility of attending college for students with financial needs like me,” she said in an email. “It is the ability to open new doors for more opportunities and be given a chance to pursue a career we are passionate about. I am super grateful for this opportunity and excited about the future.”
At St. Paul High, Rodriguez runs track, plays softball and is the manager of the football team. She is a member of the National Honor Society and vice president of the FFA as well.
“In the fall, I will be attending Oregon Institute of Technology in hopes of pursuing a career as a medical imaging technician,” she said. “I want to keep helping more people in the future, and thanks to the Ford Family Foundation, I am one step closer to achieving my goals.”
Saldivar Garcia is a member of the National Honor Society and the editor of the school yearbook. She earned her seal of biliteracy in Spanish and plans to study business next year at the University of Oregon.
“Receiving the Ford scholarship means something unimaginable,” she said. “I am able to pursue my passion and go to college. I am a first-generation student and the first in my family to go to college, so this means I will not only open opportunities for myself but for my family too. I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity and I will cherish it forever.”
Herrera-Manuel is a member of the National Honor Society, senior class president at Willamette Career Academy and earned her seal of biliteracy in Spanish. She plans to study nursing in college next year.
“To me, being able to receive the Ford Scholars Program Scholarship means a new opportunity,” she said in an email. “It's like a new set of doors opening. It's giving me that opportunity no one in my family has had to be able to go to college, alongside with the reassurance that I will be able to make my parents proud by being the first in the family to get the degree. Since I come from a lower income family the scholarship is providing me the opportunity to get a great education. To me being able to receive the scholarship means a lot.”
All three are also members of the Key Club and St. Paul Business Leaders Club. They have all attended Willamette Career Academy for the past two years as well.
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