DREAM Act Scholarship Award Winners
Despite receiving great applications from impressive students around the country, we are tasked with awarding one outstanding young individual, who deserves to be recognized for their hard work and perseverance and their commitment to education despite any adversity faced as a child of hard-working immigrants in America.
2020 Winner: Angela Zhong
Angela Zhong is a first-year student at Harvard College hailing from Houston, Texas. She is considering studying economics, government, or statistics and is pursuing a citation in Mandarin. She is an analyst for the Harvard College Consulting Group and Harvard Undergraduate Foreign Policy Initiative, where she studies international market expansion / risk mitigation strategies for a S&P 500 company and the Uyghur Muslim crisis in China respectively. Angela is also conducting research on the implications of gender minorities in peacebuilding for United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Advocate Dr. Alaa Murabit’s Radcliffe Research Institute project. She continues to give back to her community as a NewGen Peacebuilder, receiving the Coca-Cola Scholarship and Harvard Club of Houston Service Fellowship for her efforts. In her free time, she enjoys figure skating.
Reaction Statement: “As a first generation immigrant, this platform and opportunity means a lot to me, and I highly encourage others to apply as well! Thank you so much to Capital Immigration Lawyers for everything that you do!”
2018-2019 Winner: Michael Jasso-Kelly
Michael Jasso-Kelly was born and raised in Marion, South Carolina. He attended Lander University for four years and graduated with a BA in History and Spanish. After studying abroad for a year in Spain, he obtained an interest in Spanish and Hispanic-American studies and is furthering education at Texas State University. Currently, he lives in San Marcos, Texas and is pursuing a MA in Spanish and hopes to teach Spanish upon graduation. As an educator, Michael hopes to raise awareness of immigration policy and cultural diversity. In his free time, Michael enjoys reading, drawing, photography, and traveling.
In his own words, Michael said “Your scholarship means so much to me. I find it difficult to express the amount of gratitude I feel in one short page. This contribution will allow me to effectively continue my studies and focus my time and energy on school and the important things in life. You have helped pave my road towards graduation and will allow me to eventually give back to the community in the future. Again, thank you for your generosity; I am extremely grateful and am now looking forward to the upcoming semester because of the huge relief you have provided me.”
2017 Winner: Dayana Esquivel
Dayana Esquivel is the winner of the 2017 Dream Act Scholarship. She is going to graduate from Temescal Canyon High School in Lake Elsinore, California. She grew up in a family of immigrants so she has always been politically informed whenever it came to immigration policy. Her family’s hard work ethic inspired to “sigue adelante” (Spanish for “to get ahead”) despite her financial adversity. She was committed to her education ever since and was ambitious to work towards higher education. Her ruthless attitude towards putting all her efforts as an investment towards her future has brought her great achievements. As the Temescal’s Salutatorian, she has invested her time to her community through service projects and careers. She has risen above the prejudice that follows first generation Americans and will be attending the University of California, Santa Barbara this fall as a global studies major. She plans to follow their pre-law track in order to potentially have a career addressing foreign policy and human rights, a topic she is increasingly passionate about.
In her own words, Dayana said “When I received a call informing that I was the 2017 Dream Act Scholarship Recipient, my excitement was beyond me. I was extremely grateful and happy that money is not going to stop me from reaching my ambitions. I knew the hard work I put into my essay was all worth it because that is $500 more I don’t have to take out in loans!
I would personally like to thank you for this scholarship, it means the world to me that you have helped me reach my future endeavors.”
2016 Winner: Ernest Raphiel Airon M. Lontoc
In 2016, Ernest Lontoc, a recent high school graduate, is the winner of the DREAM Act Scholarship, designed to support individuals who are interested in making a difference in the lives of immigrants and other non-native individuals living in the United States.
By furthering the educational goals of these unique members of our nation, our firm looks to invest in a richer, more inclusive future for our country and those who seek to join it, and Mr. Lontoc is no exception as his impressive academic history and commitment to his community showcase how best to overcome any adversity and keep in pursuit of his educational goals.
Having just graduated from Florida Atlantic University High School, Mr. Lontoc was grateful to discover he was the recipient of this year’s scholarship and stated that it would help to support his goal of continuing his education and becoming a nurse. His commitment to serving others and making a better future for everyone through his aspirations in nursing show us this is only the beginning of great work to come from this young man.