Honoring our College Youth Scholars
By Henry Street Settlement
Nearly 80 college scholarship recipients and their proud families gathered at 301 Henry Street for the annual Youth Scholarship Awards Ceremony on Saturday, June 4. Scholarships were awarded from the Abrons/Aranow Scholarship Fund, the Tannenbaum Scholarship Fund and the Sobie Scholarship Fund.
Welcoming the guests, Greg Rideout, Deputy Program Officer for Education and Employment, noted that when he first joined Henry Street a decade ago, there were just 12 scholarships awarded. “It’s wonderful to see how the program has expanded,” he said.
David Garza, Executive Director of Henry Street, congratulated the students and then gave them a quiz. “The Mission of Henry Street Settlement is to open doors of opportunity for people so they can lead better lives and today, where we’re celebrating a literal example of that mission — opening the door to college. I’d like to take a moment to congratulate our Education team who work to make that possible.
“I’m going to ask you a question: “How many people does it take to open a door the right way, if you have no idea what’s on the other side? Since it’s not a school day, I’m going to give you the answer. It’s 54.86.”
Garza calculated that number by using a complicated (and humorous) algorithm that involved each student, their family, friends, the scholarship funders, the Henry Street staff and elected officials.
He closed with a quote from Muhammad Ali: “Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they’ve been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It’s an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It’s a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing.
Garza added, “POSSIBLE is everything, especially when you have 54.86 people behind you.”
The first of two student speakers, Shaik Jaman, said without Henry Street he wouldn’t be attending Hunter College this fall on a full scholarship. His family always expected him to go to college, but didn’t have details. “I had no idea how to get into college,” he said, adding that the Settlement showed him the way. “My time at Henry Street has been full of unforgettable growing experiences. But I know that getting into college is just the beginning of the journey,” said Shaik, who will major in biology with sights set on medical school.
Elizabeth Valenzuela, a Trinity College senior attending on a Posse Scholarship, said, “I remember walking through the doors of this building as a shy junior seeking SAT prep. As a resident of Washington Heights, I knew that getting here every week would be a trek, but I was determined to do well on the exam because I believed that a high score was the gateway to college admission. My high school had not completely prepared me for Trinity’s academics. During a particularly grueling midterm week, I received a surprise in the mail – a care package from Henry Street! It was exactly the boost I needed and it reminded me that Henry Street was always there for me.” Elizabeth offered advice for the scholarship winners and led the audience in a big round of applause.
The scholarship awardees are all participants in the Settlement’s Expanded Horizons College Success Program which works with high school students (beginning in grade nine) to prepare them to college, and with college students to ensure their graduation in four years.
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TANNENBAUM SCHOLARSHIP AWARDEES
Nowamagbe Aiyevbomwan, RPI
Kircys Canela, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts
Carlos Del La Rosa, St. Bonaventure University
Amy Jiang, Babson College
Tina Lu, Stony Brook University
Vidushi Sharma, University at Albany
Rachade Williams, Ithaca College
SOBIE SCHOLARSHIP AWARDEES
Kam Bong Chim, Stony Brook University
Brenda Coleman, University at Buffalo
James Lin, Pace University
ABRONS/ARANOW SCHOLARSHIP AWARDEES
Deeshawn Adams, Finger Lakes Community College
Geddes Alexander, The New School
Sharice Alonzo, Babson College
Tenzing Andrugtsang, Wheaton College
Kenya Arias, Philadelphia University
Meliza Barrero, Hunter College
Angelique Barreto, LaGuardia Community College
Omar Bennett, SUNY Potsdam
Spencer Bronfman, City College
Alejandro Cadena, Penn State University
Stephanie Cen, New York University
Nicolas Chase, Brooklyn College
Danielle Cooper, College of Saint Rose
Yamilex Diaz, University at New Paltz
Jason Dominguez, Colgate University
Lancine Doumbia, City College
Saniesha Fearon, Fashion Institute of Technology
Josephine Fernandez, Fordham University-Lincoln Center
Tatiana Fernandez, Barnard College
Elvis Fernandez, Stony Brook University
Jeffrey Francisco, City College
Timesha Galbreath, LaGuardia Community College
Carlton Georges IV, Albright College
Nikky Gonzalez, Hunter College
Amanda Gonzalez, Buffalo State College
Maryanna Goris, SUNY Geneso
Mariaelena Guerrero, Baruch College
Mohammed Hussain, City College
Lawrence Igboekwe, University at Buffalo
Shaik Jaman, Hunter College
Eona John, Bernard M. Baruch College
Kees Johnson, Pace University
Elaine Johnson, City College
Ping Ping Lei, Stony Brook University
James Li, Stony Brook University
Xia Qian (Amy) Li, BMCC
ZhiQing Lin, University at Buffalo
Suriya Lisa, Barnard College
Ashley Lopez, Binghamton University
Alexandra Lu, Stony Brook University
Keven Macareno, Brandeis University
Kendra Mahabir, Brooklyn College
Desiree Martinez, University at Albany
Natasha Matey, Queens College
Lonniece McDonald, University at New Paltz
Ceronne Mitchell, Baruch College
Julio Montenegro, CUNY Kingsborough Community College
Bibi Morium, Baruch College
Gabriela Mota, City College
Edwin Ng, Boston University
John Nguyen, The Cooper Union
Chelsea Nuesi, Skidmore College
Phebeana Ojomoses, Guttman Community College
Heydrick Padilla, Wheaton College
Farzana Parveen, Brandeis University
Maya Passie, City Tech
Taisha Pelletler, Franklin and Marshall College
Qi yue Peng, Columbia University
Denise Peralta, Potsdam University
Oneika Pryce, Queens College
Kalani Quinones, University at Albany
Tahminur Rahman, Hofstra University
Shachy Rivas, Emory University
Yvonna Roderick, Brandeis University
Hector Rodriguez, City College
Celina Rogocz, Baruch College
Tiffany Rosano, Marist College
Jorge Salazar, University at Albany
Lesley Sanchez, City Tech
Kimberly Servande, Menlo College
Vivian So, Hunter College
Jenifer Soriano, Queens College
Merissa M. Spaulding, Skidmore College
Emily Sze, Stony Brook University
Angel Tatis, Binghamton University
Abriana Tavarez, Adelphi University
Kiara Timo-Vaughn, Loyola University
Daryl-Dwayne Tobierre, Baruch College
Alexander P. Torbov, Baruch College
Kimberly Torres, SUNY Fredonia
Destini Torres, Albright College
Natalie Torres, SUNY Oswego
Shirley Troche, Fordham University
Elizabeth Valenzuela, Trinity College
Gabrielle Varghese, City College
Kevin Velez, New York University
Wilson Velez, BMCC
Natchanon Vutrapongvatana, Brooklyn College, Macaulay Honors College
Wilson Wu, Binghamton University
Brenda Xiao, University at Buffalo
