Each spring, the Morgan Hill chapter of the American Association of University Women (AAUW) awards three $1,000 scholarships to young women entering college, one each to graduating high school seniors from Live Oak, Ann Sobrato and Central Continuation high schools.
• Madeline Duran’s involvement with Central High School’s Interact Club taught her the importance of helping others and striving for the best. Madeline will attend Gavilan College for a degree in cosmetology and hopes one day to have her own hair salon.
• Heather Sjostedt, from Sobrato, fell in love with computer animation after going on an AAUW sponsored Girls Engaged in Math and Science (GEMS) field trip to Nvidia. Heather will pursue her goal at UC Davis.
• Whitney Waller, from Live Oak, thrives on community involvement and being of service. Whitney plans to pursue a career in psychology at Sacramento State University.
In addition to the high school scholarships, AAUW-MH annually awards several $1,000 scholarships to women currently attending a community college. The winners of the 2014 community college scholarships were:
• Mindy Casillo who lives in Morgan Hill with her husband and four sons. She works full-time while taking classes at Gavilan and Evergreen colleges. Mindy plans to transfer to San Jose State University in the fall of 2015 to continue her studies in computer science and information systems.
• Shannon Mortela works part-time at Barrett Elementary and volunteers in a special day class once a week while pursuing her educational goals at Gavilan College. Shannon returned to college after a nine-year absence with plans to become a school social worker. She will transfer to SJSU to complete her undergraduate degree.
• Leslie Montes is pursuing her dream at Gavilan College to become a pediatric nurse with plans to transfer to SJSU’s nursing program. She has been on the dean’s list for the past three years and belongs to Rho Alpha Mu honor society.
For information about the AAUW, email me********@*************ll.org.
