HISPANIC SCHOLARSHIP FUND INDUCTS FIVE
INTO
2003 ALUMNI HALL OF FAME
Second Annual National Honor Celebrates
Success Stories to Inspire Future Hispanic College Graduates; Inductees Include
White House Counsel Alberto Gonzales
WASHINGTON, Oct.
7, 2003 – The Hispanic Scholarship Fund (HSF), the nation’s leading organization supporting Hispanic higher education,
today announced the induction of five individuals into the 2003 HSF Alumni Hall
of Fame established to feature role models for future
generations of Hispanic college students and to illustrate the power of higher
education.
This year’s inductees, representing achievements in the academic,
medical, government and arts fields, include Judge Alberto R. Gonzales, White
House counsel; writer Sergio Troncoso; Carolina Reyes, M.D., assistant professor at UCLA’s Geffen School of Medicine
and the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology; Hisauro Garza, Ph.D., director of the Southwest
Center for Human Relations Studies at the University of Oklahoma; and Martha Chávez McGivney, director
of the Master of Science in Public Policy and Management Program, Carnegie
Mellon University.
“Through the HSF Alumni Hall of Fame, we are contributing to our
community’s tradition of storytelling to show our children the possibilities offered by education,” said Sara
Martinez Tucker, president and CEO of HSF. “By
spotlighting our inductees, their stories, their perseverance and their
dedication to their families, professions, community and heritage, we strive to
inspire younger generations to create a tradition of college-going in our
community.”
The
HSF Alumni Hall of Fame event, now in its second year, celebrates the
incredible stories of five Hispanics who, through their accomplishments,
contributions and lifetime challenges, demonstrate the power of higher
education and mentorship to change a life and positively impact the world. Each
honoree’s story illustrates the possibilities offered
by higher education and personifies the mission and values of HSF. Awards are
given in the Optimista, Altruista, Triunfador, Inspirador and Brillante categories.
Four
outstanding HSF Alumni, who have received an HSF scholarship during the
organization’s 28 years, and one individual who, while not a former HSF
Scholar, has earned a college degree, excels in his/her career and community,
and is a positive role model for Hispanic students are inducted.
This
year’s inductees, honored at a gala event today at the Four Seasons Hotel in
Washington, D.C., are:
·
Alberto R. Gonzales, Counsel to the President of the United
States (Honorary HSF Scholar), who represents the Triunfador, awarded for realizing the ultimate achievement in his
profession and personifying the HSF value of “raising the bar.” Gonzales, the second of eight children to
parents who had not completed elementary school, graduated from the Air Force
Academy and Harvard University’s law school to ultimately become the
president’s advisor on all legal issues concerning the Office of the President
and the White House, including policy, ethics and legislation.
·
Sergio Troncoso, Writer (HSF Scholar 1984, 1988, 1990), who represents this year’s Brillante, for realizing extraordinary achievements early in his
career, and from whom great things are expected. Troncoso, who was raised in the outskirts of El Paso, Texas, without
paved roads, running water or electricity, became the editor-in-chief of his
high school paper, received his bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and
two master's degrees from Yale University.
He won the Premio Aztlan
and the Southwest Book Award for his book, The
Last Tortilla and Other Stories. He
has just published a path-breaking novel, The
Nature of Truth, a philosophical thriller set at Yale.
·
Carolina
Reyes, M.D., Attending Physician at
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and assistant professor at the David Geffen School
of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles (HSF Scholar 1983,
1986, 1987), who represents the Altruista awarded for personifying the spirit of gratitude, the value of giving back and the
philosophy: “Of those to whom much
is given, much is expected.” Born
into a family
of eight children to third generation agricultural workers who had little
schooling themselves, Reyes graduated from Stanford University and Harvard
University’s medical school, discovered a correlation between chronic health
problems among Latinas and domestic violence, and co-authored a book on
domestic violence and health care policies and prevention.
·
Hisauro Garza, Ph.D., Director of
the Southwest
Center for Human Relations Studies, University of
Oklahoma
(HSF Scholar 1983), who represents the Optimista, which honors success
achieved through unflagging persistence in the face of adversity.
Garza, the son of first-generation Mexican American campesinos, faced many battles
early on, including the murder of his father at an agricultural labor camp and
attending more than 30 different schools. He eventually overcame these
obstacles to receive not only his bachelor’s and master’s degrees, but a Ph.D.
as well.
·
Martha Chávez McGivney,
Director,
Master of Science in Public Policy and Management Program, Carnegie Mellon University
H. John Heinz III School of Public Policy and Management
(HSF Scholar 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992), who represents the Inspirador, awarded for breaking of the cycle of
under-education and becoming the first ever in their families to get a
college degree. McGivney, who came from Guanajuato,
Mexico with her migrant farm-working parents, became one of the first in her
family to graduate high school, received her bachelor’s degree in economics and
her master’s degree in public policy and management from Carnegie Mellon
University, and went on to study the plight and struggles of migrant families
and children.
These
five join the first class of honorees inducted last year, which included: Dr. Richard Carmona, Surgeon General
of the United States; Rodolpho Carrasco,
associate director of the Harambee Christian Family Center in Pasadena, Calif.;
Lisa Quiroz, founder and
publisher of People en Español; Elias Fernandez, winemaker for Shafer Vineyards in Napa Valley,
Calif.; and Fortunato Tapia,
community outreach organizer, Los Angeles Unified School District.
The 2003
HSF Alumni Hall of Fame is made possible by generous support from, Platinum
Sponsor: Procter & Gamble; Gold Sponsors: Budweiser, The Coca-Cola Company,
Ford Motor Company, General Motors Corporation, Nationwide Insurance, Target,
and Univision;
Media Sponsor: Hispanic magazine; and Airline Sponsor: Southwest
Airlines.
About the Hispanic Scholarship Fund
The
Hispanic Scholarship Fund (HSF) is the nation’s leading organization supporting
Hispanic higher education. Founded in 1975, HSF’s
vision is to strengthen the country by advancing college education among
Hispanic Americans, the fastest-growing segment of the U.S. population. In
support of its mission to double the rate of Hispanics earning college degrees,
HSF, a 501(c)3 not-for profit organization, provides
the Latino community more college scholarships and educational outreach support
than any other organization in the country. Headquartered in San Francisco, HSF
has opened regional offices in Southern and Central California, the Northeast,
the Southeast, Midwest and Texas. In addition, HSF launched the
Washington, D.C.-based Hispanic Scholarship Fund Institute to generate public
partnerships in support of its work. During its 28-year history, HSF has
awarded more than 61,000 scholarships in excess of $115 million to Latinos from
all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands who have attended more
than 1,700 colleges and universities.
###
Media Contacts:
Miguel Salinas, Hispanic
Scholarship Fund, (415) 808-2352 office; (408) 896-8362, mobile
Monica Talán,
Fleishman Hillard, (512) 495-7167
Hispanic
Scholarship Fund