3837 Simpson Stuart Road
Dallas, Texas 75241

 

September 18, 2013

 

 

 

 

Robert Tinajero

Scholarship Committee President

5601 Campus Drive

Ft. Worth, Texas 76119

 

Dear Roberto Tinajero,

 

My name is Celia Soto, I am currently enrolled as a full time undergraduate student in the Bachelors of Science in Business Accounting at Paul Quinn College (PQC). In order to achieve my goal to obtain a higher education I had found both obstacles and opportunities on my road. Opportunities like yours, who looks to recognize the labor of students with strong leadership qualities, high academic performance, and civic as well as volunteer work within the community. Through my story, I will attempt to persuade you to recompense me with a scholarship prize in order to continue my dream.  

 

Coming from a family with strong values which also prides the importance of education; integrity and academic excellence had been always my mentors. Results of their advices can be seen in my above and beyond average academic results as well as my honesty and reliability as a team player inside and outside the classroom. My roots come from Mexico, but currently I live in Dallas, Texas, city where I attended Duncanville High School.

 

During the only year I pursued high school in EEUU –because I moved here one year before I graduated high school in Mexico- My family and I faced several challenges and fears. Some of the challenges were: to find a place to live, to obtain a job, to learn the language and to adapt to the culture. My biggest fear was –and keeps being- failure. Another fear was the impossibility to graduate on time. Few months after finally we were able to settle, then I resumed my journey. Regardless of any challenge I was able to graduate at the top of my class with honors, but clueless about what was next.

 

After a sequence of events I finally got to college, just one year after I graduated from high school. The journey was complicated, but during that time off school I learned invaluable life lessons. I understand in a better way the terms sacrifice, commitment and time management. Giving up all the economic resources I have to in order to pay bills, the indomitable desire to offer my family a better quality life while I kept my self-motivated for a brighter future and the ability to balance two jobs and my house duties taught me that there is life aside from books and formulas. However, the access to money did not distortion my dream to continue a higher education, instead it made me hungrier to achieve it sooner. Then when the opportunity was given to continue school, I took full advantage of what my college had to offer.

 

Being part of the Quinnite Nation, pseudonym for PQC, has been one of the best things that had happen to me in life. They believed in me when no other school did, and they offered me a path to continue my trip towards my dream. Since I been a PQC student I had been involved in several community service projects like the Parade of Giants: Puppet construction; the Community Cooks annual event, among others. My university has also offered me the opportunity to develop a professional career while I am at school. Some places where I had been working are KIPP: DFW Finance and Development departments, serving as an accounting and special projects intern, respectively. These positions taught me the principles of accounting, what is fundraising and why is so important to be a philanthropist. Another work experience I have is to be one of the first interns for the Center for Fundraising and Philanthropy at PQC. Working directly with the director of the center allowed me to share my knowledge about the area of development and also let me improve my skills as a communicator, philanthropist and advocate for the causes I care.

 

Some of my civic involvement comes directly from PQC were school organizations duties went beyond the university gates. Being part of the student government association, allowed me to organize and participate of the movement “We are not Trash”, which had as a goal to block the expansion of the McCommas landfill. Secondly, I had been part of the Children’s Defense Fund since two years ago and the position of being a young leader advocate has motivated me to create programs to impulse the vote among college students and to offer tutoring sessions to children from 7 to 11 years old. Lastly, most of the work I do for my college has an emphasis to leave a place better that I founded; I can be count as one of the founders for the current organizations: the Latino Student Association, the Quinnite Ambassadors and the Association for Fundraiser Professionals, Collegiate chapter. Groups that have as a final goal to improve the quality of students the school has and to put them in the road to success.

 

Finally, I thank you for your time to read my application letter and most important I invite you to consider the possibility to grant me with this award. I am aware that there should be another students out there probably more qualified and with more experience than mine, but I can guarantee you that none of them have the enthusiasm and hungry that I have to accomplish my dream to obtain a higher education. Once again, thank you for the time and resources that you put available so more people, like me, can accomplish greater dreams.     

 

Sincerely,

 

Celia N. Soto

 

Celia N. Soto