Single Moms
Stay in School
Five Cal State Fullerton Students
to Receive YWCA Scholarships
June 28, 2007 :: No. 243
One is living in a homeless shelter with her
autistic daughter. Another is physically disabled and raising
a son with a learning disability. Three other single mothers
also have obstacles they are overcoming. All five are struggling
to raise their children and complete their college degrees
at Cal State Fullerton.
On Saturday, June
30, these single mothers will receive financial assistance
from the YWCA of North Orange County. Thanks to the organization’s
Thurmond College Scholarships, four, who are attending classes
full-time, will receive $2,000 scholarships and one, who
is studying part-time, will receive a $1,000 scholarship
during an awards luncheon at the Wyndham Hotel in Fullerton.
The
award recipients are:
• Midori
T. Tanaka of Irvine, international business with a concentration
in Japanese
• Shannon
Ortiz of Tustin, English
• Patricia
Campbell of Yorba Linda, anthropology
• Farhana
Saima of Highland, pre-business
• Lilli
Asiabanpour of Mission Viejo, business administration with a concentration
in accounting
“My parents
started this scholarship to help single mothers who have
a need for financial assistance,” Don Thurmond said. “It’s
a niche that needed to be filled.”
To qualify for
the scholarship, recipients must be at least 24 years old,
have a 2.0 or higher grade point average and be working toward completing a undergraduate
degree, said Diane Masseth-Jones, executive director for the YWCA of North Orange
County.
She
said there are plenty of scholarship offers for younger students
fresh out of high school, but few for single mothers, who
often need the most financial assistance.
“The YWCA’s
Thurmond College Scholarship recipients are role models for
other single parents,” said Rosamaria Gomez-Amaro,
director of CSUF’s
Diversity and Equity Programs and president of the YWCA’s
board of directors.
“In
spite of their circumstances as single parents with very
limited incomes and — in many cases — domestic
abuse, they have not allowed life’s setbacks to limit
their futures. With determination, each has faced the challenges
of balancing multiple roles successfully — as single
parents raising their children and actively participating
in their lives; at work as exemplary employees or holding
more than one job to support their families; activists or
leaders in their communities for women’s and children’s
rights; and excelling in their college classes.”
Media Contacts: |
Rosamaria Gomez-Amaro, 657-278-7404, rgomezamaro@fullerton.edu
Mimi
Ko Cruz, Public Affairs, 657-278-7586, mkocruz@fullerton.edu |
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