Category: Scholarships
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Michael Nwaigbo
Michael Nwaigbo grew up in Nigeria and moved to Chicago as a teen. He decided to attend Kennedy-King College after graduating from Hyde Park Academy and earning the Star Scholarship. Once at Kennedy-King, he placed his focus on obtaining his Associate of Science degree, with the hopes of transferring to a four-year university and majoring…
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Florencia Laino
Being undocumented has always played a big role in who I am. But it’s also been my biggest challenge in pursuing higher education. At least that’s what I thought before. I came to Chicago from Uruguay when I was almost a year old and grew up sharing a one-bedroom apartment with my family in Albany…
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Takeshia Carter
Takeshia Carter has always loved cars. Growing up, she built model cars and walked around with small car parts in her pocket. But she wasn’t sure she would be able to make automotive collision repair her career. “For my whole life, they told me women don’t do that,” Takeshia said. Still, collision repair came naturally…
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Marvens Saint-Juste
When Harold Washington College student Marvens Saint-Juste was struggling to pay for his classes, he thought to himself, “there has to be a way [to take advantage of resources]—I just need to conduct the research.” The research was quicker than he originally imagined. In fact, just a few minutes later, Marvens found the application for…
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Jessica Ballenger
Jessica Ballenger was going through a very difficult time in her life when she found out she had been awarded the PepsiCo Foundation’s Uplift Scholarship. “It was an indicator that things were turning around for me—that I have a chance at being successful,” the Olive-Harvey College student recalled. As a working mom and student, the…
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Diego Ramirez
One of the most challenging things about being undocumented is the uncertainty. For me, that challenge was magnified when I started thinking about college. I was born in Mexico, and I came to the United States with my family when I was three years old. I grew up in the Albany Park neighborhood and lived…
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Geovanni Celaya
While eating dinner with his family, Wright College alumnus Geovanni Celaya saw an email notification from TheDream.US scholarship pop up on his phone. It wasn’t the first time he had applied for the award, which supports both high school and community college students that are undocumented as they look to pursue a bachelor’s degree. He…
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Kiara Taylor
Kiara Taylor’s interest in nursing is personal—she was inspired to one day join the profession when a nurse helped to catch her Type 1 Diabetes diagnosis back in 2009. Though her journey to the job hasn’t come without obstacles, Kiara’s passion to help others and the support she received from Malcolm X College’s nursing program…
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Sam Roberts
While a student at Harold Washington College, Sam Roberts was glad to receive support from City Colleges of Chicago staff and departments. Help came from Harold Washington College staff like Meaghan Young-Stephens, TRiO Academic Coach, and Ellen Goldberg, Transfer Center Director, who both assisted Sam with scholarship and transfer applications. An evaluation through the Wellness…
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Michael Sansone
After graduating from Whitney M. Young Magnet High School in 2009, Michael Sansone was eager to jump into the workforce. He worked his way up in the restaurant industry and even operated a food truck—but, according to Michael, his growth was starting to plateau. That’s when he decided it was time to head back to…