Colorado State's First-Generation Scholarship Program Fulfills Family Dreams
Wednesday, February 5, 1997
Note to Editors: The 1996-97 First-Generation Award
Recognition Dinner Feb. 10 will honor seven award
recipients and their families. Distinguished First-
Generation Scholar honors will be conferred on Nickie
Dee Ann Bowman, Steven Nguyen, Darlene Ann Garcia,
Brian Walter Weister, Thomas Lavane Bung, Michael
Alexander Padilla and Valerie Ann Estrada. This special
evening celebrates the academic and personal
achievements of students and demonstrates the
commitment of Colorado State to encourage students from
all backgrounds to complete their education.
FORT COLLINS--A student at Colorado State University who
recently spoke with President Bill Clinton about the importance
of the nation's student loan programs will deliver the keynote
address for the First-Generation Award banquet Feb. 10.
The First-Generation Scholarship Award program provides
higher-education opportunities for individuals who are the first
generation of their families to attend college. The program
awards scholarships to Colorado residents who demonstrate
financial need and who indicate evidence of leadership abilities
and potential for academic success.
Valerie Estrada, the keynote speaker, is a Denver native and
the oldest of seven children whose family lived in poverty. She
dropped out of high school, married, and raised three daughters.
She separated from her husband in 1991 and enrolled at Colorado
State, but the following year her oldest daughter was involved in
a serious car accident and Estrada stayed home with her for
several months. Two months after the accident, Estrada's brother
died from AIDS.
Despite all the obstacles, Estrada returned to Colorado
State full-time in the fall of 1993. She graduates in May with a
bachelor's degree in social work, and plans to attend graduate
school here.
"I told the president the only way I was able to attend the
university was through First-Generation and the direct student
loan program," Estrada said. "I talked with him for about 40
minutes in the Oval Office with five other students, and he was
very pleased to hear about our success in higher education.
"I faced a lot of obstacles, but friends and colleagues
helped out so much. Whenever I felt like dropping out, I had a
network of people in Financial Aid I could turn to for support
and encouragement."
Part of Estrada's support network includes her husband,
Phillip Gallegos, a former First-Generation scholar and 1996
graduate in construction management. Estrada's daughter,
Bernadette, is a First-Generation student studying theater at
Colorado State.
Paul Thayer, director of the Center for Educational Access
and Outreach, said award recipients performed well with respect
to grade-point average and graduation rates. Recipients represent
every ethnic group; 60 percent are female and 40 percent male; 20
percent are of nontraditional age; and 5 percent are people with
disabilities.
Since 1984, the program has awarded $6.2 million to 1,042
students. This school year, the program will award a total of
$766,000 to 268 people, which includes some first-time award
winners along with 195 students who have renewed their
scholarships.
In Sept. 1996, FirstBank of Northern Colorado committed
$60,000 to the First-Generation Scholarship Award program. The
grant provides annual tuition and fees for five incoming Colorado
State students who are part of the First-Generation program.
FirstBank's contributions to the university now total $110,000,
including a three-year $50,000 gift the bank made in 1993.
To find out more about the First-Generation Award Program,
call the Center for Educational Access and Outreach at (970)
491-6473 or Public and Media Relations at (970) 491-6432.
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