Rio Hondo awards deserving students with scholarships

While Higher Education becomes harder to reach due to the current fiscal crisis of the state, students of Rio Hondo who have shown academic excellence have been awarded scholarships as they journey off to higher education.

The Rio Hondo College Foundation, the main source of disbursements to financial aid recipients, awarded 94 students scholarships.

The Foundation's mission is to secure financial assistance for scholarships, programs, equipment, and projects to effectively meet the needs of Rio's growing student population.

With tuition costs continuing to rise annually, an increasing number of students are finding it difficult to cover their college education expenses. Several of Rio's scholarships are funded by donations from corporations such as the Latina Leadership Network, Judge Carlos Rodriguez, White Memorial Hospital and private donors that help students realize their dream of obtaining their undergraduate work.

The Associated Student of Body also awarded its peers more than 60 "Students helping Students" scholarships. With 7 categories to choose from, some only requiring 12 units completed and enrolled in 6, students were able to obtain more than one category upon meeting criteria.

In most cases scholarships are available to all students, and winners will be determined by evaluation of prior academic records, teacher recommendations, and the results of a qualifying exam as administered by the donors.

Illiana Aurora Garcia and Ernesto Zumaya both obtained the most scholarships, a total of 5 each. Garcia received: ASB (fall), Assistance League of Whittier, Students Helping Students #3 (fall), Students Helping Students #7 (fall), & Latina Leadership Network. Zumaya received the same with eh exception of the Assistance league of Whittier. However, he did obtain a scholarship from the Inter Club Council (fall)

Students interested in applying for the scholarship, or interested in more information about the Rio Hondo College Foundation should contact Dr. Andy Howard at ahoward@riohondo.edu or 562-908-3476 for more details, or visit www.riohondo.edu/foundation/contact.htm. The Foundation is located on the second floor of the administration building.

In addition to the scholarships offered by Rio Hondo College, there are a number of websites that can assist students with locating additional scholarship resources.