The Kathleen A. Smith Memorial Scholarship:

This year’s recipient, Jessca Gonzales (SKY), was born and raised in the Philippines in economic and family turmoil.  Three years ago she moved to the US with her family and later moved to San Francisco peninsula with relatives where she did domestic chores in exchange for room and board.  At Skyline she participated in the International Scholar Laureate Program and visited China and is currently an intern at Asian Pacific Islanders Outreach non-profit. Her goal is pursuing Legal Studies at UC Berkeley.

The Ethel Gayman Endowment Scholarships:

Flavious Abellana (SKY) grew up in a Filipino immigrant family, one of seven children. His extra-curricular activities include leadership roles in two honor societies, tutoring 1st graders and coaching a basketball team of 8th graders.  His goal is to earn a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and a Master’s in Public Policy at UC Berkeley.

Paula Garcia (CAN) began her interest in accounting while helping in her stepfather’s business at age 12.   In 2011, she enrolled in Berkeley City College.  Transferring to Cañada in 2012, she maintained a 4.0 while raising her three children with the help of her mother.   She will continue her accounting studies at Menlo College.

Ruo Bing Lei (SKY) emigrated from China in 1997.  From age 14 she was an intern and later supervisor at The Children’s Creativity Museum in SF.   After leadership roles in high school, she honed her skills at Skyline as a member of the Programming Board and two honor societies.  After an undergraduate degree, she plans to pursue a Master’s in Business Administration.

Steve Rueda (CSM) graduated from San Carlos High, joined the Army and served for four years.  He is a volunteer at the VA in Menlo Park helping Vets with PTSD.  At CSM he earned an AA Degree in Alcohol and other Drugs Studies, among other degrees.  As part of an honors club, he helped produce a video to attract students to CSM.  Steve has been accepted to Palo Alto University.

Jaining Yang (CAN) was born and raised in China, and came to the US in 2010.  An incident with her grandmother confirmed her commitment to become a doctor. She majored in chemistry at CAN and has other interests as well.  Jaining has been accepted by several UC’s.

Irene Yim (SKY) grew up helping in the family-owned restaurants.   She attended California Culinary Academy, then worked as a cook in the US and Far East before returning to school with an interest in food science.  She was recognized for her research at scientific conferences in 2012 and 2013.  Her goal is research and teaching with emphasis on food.  She will be attending a 4 year university in the Fall 2014.