Alondra Navarro, an incoming senior at the Dr. TJ Owen’s Gilroy Early College Academy, or GECA, received the national Alexander Hamilton Citizenship Achievement Award for superior community service and achievement.
Hamilton Awards are given out annually by The Alexander Hamilton Friends Association (Hamilton Friends) of Seattle, Washington. The purpose of the Hamilton Award is to recognize high school students for their entrepreneurial accomplishments and academic and personal service. The students are also selected for the Hamilton Leaders Academy.
“Our goal is to identify young people who have set high standards for citizenship and success in their lives. We are very excited about Alondra’s potential for future greatness,” Founder and Senior Director of Hamilton Friends George T. Cox said. “The Gilroy community is lucky to have Alondra as a resident.”
Cox said the award was very competitive this year. Hamilton Friends received 309 applications from 41 states and only 36 winners in the nation were chosen. The winners were high-achieving, service-oriented, high school juniors with significant financial need and they received a scholarship, commemorative certificates, memorabilia and acceptance into the Hamilton Leaders Academy.
Among Navarro’s many achievements that set her apart from the pack, she founded “Chicanos y Latinos Unidos”, a club which promotes unity among students of all ethnic backgrounds. The club also promotes higher education for the minority students at the small high school, which is located on the campus of Gavilan College and offers its students an accelerated learning format.
Determined to attend and graduate college herself, Navarro also hopes to increase the number of Hispanics enrolled in higher education. Through her club, Navarro plans to host informative seminars for Hispanic eighth-grade students and their parents concerning the importance of a college education and how to obtain one.
Navarro also gives back to her community through a number of nonprofit organizations and is vice-president of her school’s “Interact Club” which focuses on community service. Over the last two years, she has dedicated hundreds of hours to volunteering at a local food pantry and soup kitchen. Additionally, Navarro was recently selected as an ANNpower Fellow, becoming part of a selective national network poised to become the next generation of women leaders.
According to a press release from GECA, while Navarro will be the first in her family to obtain a college degree, her passion for education stems from her family. Navarro’s parents have instilled in her a strong desire to succeed. They have worked extremely hard to support their oldest daughter and her three younger siblings in achieving success through education. Navarro strives to achieve her academic and career goals not only for herself, but also for her family and other students who she may inspire along the way, the press release states.
