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‘Best & brightest’

Elena Avina was just elected student body president of finance for the 2006-2007 school year at Cal State Bakersfield.

She is a double major in computer science and business.

And, she comes from a migrant family.

Avina’s humble beginnings did not crush her dreams.

In fact, she’s also a recipient of a Hispanic Excellence Scholarship — one of 73 awardees — and among the scheduled student speakers at the Hispanic Excellence Scholarship Fund awards banquet on Sept. 30.

“To me, it’s really important,” Avina said of the scholarship award. “I don’t want to say it’s going to make the difference between me going to college or not, but it’s definitely assisting me.”

Avina added that she always knew she would go to college, even if it meant taking out loans to do so.

The Hispanic Excellence Scholarship Fund was launched in 1984 by former CSUB President Tomás Arciniega to increase access to a college education for academically sound, needy, underrepresented students who demonstrate leadership abilities.

“It is about honoring our best and our brightest, really those that are going to become our future leaders,” said Thomas Martinez, assistant to the president for special projects at CSUB.

Students must have a minimum 3.0 grade point average, although among the scholarship recipients, the average GPA is somewhere between 3.5 and 3.7, according to Martinez.

“To me, one of the important things is the tradition and the honor associated with receiving one,” said Martinez of the scholarship program.

From a small, local scholarship program, the Hispanic Excellence Scholarship Fund has steadily grown to become one of the premiere university-based scholarship programs of its kind, according to Martinez.

Initially, scholarships in the amount of $750 were awarded to eight outstanding students.

But in 2000, CSUB entered into a collaborative dollar-for-dollar matching program with the national Hispanic Scholarship Fund.

At this point, the the HESF has helped 900-plus students and disbursed more than $1.8 million in scholarships, according to Martinez.

“It is one of the largest state university scholarship programs of any kind,” Martinez said.

Each student receives between $1,500-$2,000, Martinez said.

“The way financial aid programs are structured, a lot of scholarships and grants drop-off after the first year and in subsequent years, students are forced to take out loans,” he said. “Everybody likes the freshman.”

Martinez attributes this situation as part of the reason why there is lag between the number of Hispanic students entering college and the number actually graduating.

With the HESF program, students can continue to apply and receive the scholarship year after year, which goes a long way in off-setting debt incurred.

Avina is currently in her third year at CSUB, but says it will likely take her a total of six years to complete her double major. Without scholarships and at current tuition rates, Avina could accumulate more than $18,000 in debt.

At the banquet, Avina said she plans to speak about how the scholarship has played a key role in her education. She also plans to discuss the importance of networking in college through involvement with clubs and other groups on campus.

The keynote speaker for the awards banquet will be Bobby Verdugo.

Verdugo is the coordinator of the El Joven Nobel program, a campaign aimed at young men in the East LA area to teach positive male behavior, prevent unintended pregnancies and stop the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.

He also works with Bienvenidos Family Services and the National Latino Fatherhood and Family Institute. The three groups are an integrated effort of nationally recognized leaders in the fields of Latino health, education, social services and community mobilization.

Verdugo was part of the East LA High School walkouts of 1968. He has been featured in both a documentary on the incidents and the recent HBO movie, “Walkout” for his involvement in the Latino civil rights movement.

As for the scholarship banquet itself, Martinez looks forward to it.

“The event really makes for a nice evening. The more people, the better,” he said.

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Hispanic Excellence Scholarship Fund Awards Banquet
Tickets: $60
When: 6 p.m., Sept. 30
Location: Doubletree Hotel
Keynote Speaker: Bobby Verdugo