THE Zoila Gomez Si Se Puede (ZGSSP) Scholarship Committee presented financial awards to four students during the 4th Annual Sangre de Cristo National Heritage Area Cinco de Mayo Block Party held on May 6.
Community members from organizations including The Colorado Trust, Boys and Girls Club, Adams State University, Immigrant Resource Center, Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA) and Zoila Gomez, created the Zoila Gomez Si Se Puede (ZGSSP) Scholarship for local undocumented and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) students in the San Luis Valley.
After receiving several donations, including one for $25,000 from CHFA, the scholarship committee provided a total of $8,000 to four deserving students ($2,000 each) to help them pursue their higher education goals for the 2021-22 academic year. The Zoila Gomez Si Se Puede Scholarship was created to support undocumented students pursuing higher education, since those students do not qualify for federal financial aid.
Gomez, an alumnus of Adams State, took the stage throughout the evening to discuss the important and unmet needs of educational equity in the community.