AHSIE 2019 Scholarship Recipients

Dulce Gonzalez

Bachelor’s Degree Program, University of California-Santa Barbara

Dulce Gonzalez is a fourth year undergraduate student at the University of California, Santa Barbara originating from San Diego. She is currently studying Sociology with minors in Applied Psychology and Education, and is a proud student activist and peer mentor on her campus. Dulce’s post-graduation goal is to attend a Masters in Social Work program in the fall and become a licensed clinical social worker with an emphasis in underrepresented children and families. In her career, she hopes to help under-served youth, especially Latinx and other minority youth to overcome the social and institutional barriers that limit their opportunities to thrive.

Gustavo Garcia

Master/Doctoral Degree Program, University of New Mexico

Gustavo García is a first generation Xicano Zapotec that was born and raised in Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley. His family is from the Central Valley of Oaxaca from a Zapotec community named San Baltazar Chichicapan. He first started as a community college student at Santa Monica College where he received an AA in Social and Behavior Science. He then transferred to the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) and graduate with a BA in Chicanx Studies and American Indian Studies. As an undergraduate, he participated in the Ronald E. McNair Research Scholars Program where he engaged with Indigenous Chicanx educational institutions and explored questions around what it means for Chicanx communities to create, sustain, and center indigenous frameworks, practices and communities. Currently, he is a PhD student in the Department of American Studies where he is also getting a graduate certificate in Chicanx Studies. His current research interests engage with Chicanx Studies and Indigenous studies, particularly with questions around hemispheric Indigenous social movements and education, Zapotec Studies, and Indigenous migration. In his spare time, he participates in various undergraduate and graduate student collectives, Danza Azteca, Son Jarocho and the Department of Chicanx Studies. Furthermore, he mentors undergraduate students with research and graduate school through the El Puente Research Program that is hosted by El Centro de La Raza. As for his future goals, Gustavo is interested in becoming a professor where he can continue working with Latinx students.

Karina Castro

Master/Doctoral Degree Program, The University of Texas at San Antonio

Karina Castro is an Educational Leadership and Policy Studies graduate student at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA). Her research focuses on higher education access for immigrant communities, emphasizing undocumented Latinxs in south Texas. As a DACA-mented scholar from Sinaloa, Mexico, who considers San Antonio her home, Karina is especially passionate about this work. Beyond academia, she has committed to advocacy and service for fellow immigrants in various capacities, such as Post Release Outreach Specialist for the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES) and San Antonio Education Partnership Liaison for the local Mexican Consulate. She hopes to become a profesora and mentor at a Hispanic-Serving Institution. In her free time, she loves painting, hiking, and exploring new cities with her loved ones.

Enrique Llamas

Associate Degree Program, Truckee Meadows Community College

Enrique Llamas is a native Nevadan, and a first-generation Hispanic college student. He is currently enrolled at Truckee Meadows Community College, and will graduate in the spring of 2019 with his Associates of Science. He will then further his education at the University of Nevada-Reno to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Nursing. Enrique’s passion for education in healthcare and leadership has enabled him to overcome many adversities throughout his life. He is an active participant in community service and mentorship for his hometown of Reno. Born to a Mexican-American, single mother, Enrique has taken initiative to be the role model of his home, as he has received numerous honorable mentions, taken part in a Health Science Academy, experienced internships, and many more. Enrique has been the first person to graduate with a high school diploma, and will be the first to receive a college degree. Being the student he is, Enrique wants to make a difference for his peers and specifically men of color. Enrique participates in the Men of Color Mentorship program at Truckee Meadows Community College, as a mentor to high school students. By doing this, he hopes to create statistical change within the men of color in his community, in hopes of brighter futures and empowering future leaders from his community. Enrique’s primary goal is to become a travel nurse and aid those in underdeveloped countries, and to start a nonprofit organization.

Monica Edman

Bachelor’s Degree Program, The University of Texas at San Antonio

Monica Edman, better known to her community as Moni Avila has spent past 15+ years as an artist and educator for under-served youth from the public schools to the non-profit sector while simultaneously owning a business and working for the family company. Her grass-roots program, MAS for the Masses has gained national attention and was featured in the USA Today Hispanic Living Magazine. The program was born from the idea that children must strengthen their sense of self identity if they are to be empowered and succeed. Seeing firsthand the impact of teen pregnancy, low educational achievement, and the cycle of poverty specifically in Mexican-American communities has driven her community involvement and resolve to affect change within an under-served demographic. Avila is a single mother to three amazing young women and one equally amazing son. She has undergraduates’ degrees in Liberal Arts, Journalism and Mexican-American Studies. Avila was selected to participate as a Mellon Humanities Fellow and a McNair Scholar. She hopes to earn a PhD in the not too distant future.