We are pleased to bring you this success story about a girl that choose not to be just another statistic. A true inspiration!
Dominique Rodriguez didn’t know how she was going to afford college. The high school senior had lived in a homeless shelter with her mother and older sister. Her father was largely absent because he was in and out of jail. She considered herself just another statistic – poor, female and Hispanic – living in the Bronx.
But there was one outlet.
“Going to school and not having to be in the shelter was my only escape,” said Rodriguez, 18. “To this day, I feel like getting a great education will be my escape to living in the Bronx or struggling financially.”
Rodriguez is one of 104 Horatio Alger National Scholars who received a $20,000 scholarship towards college. Applicants had to write essays about overcoming adversity. Dominique hopes to use it for Syracuse University or Barnard College.
By Corinne Lestch/ Daily News
Read the full article here
If you are student and need help visit: https://www.horatioalger.org/scholarships/index.cfm
About the Horatio Alger Association – The Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans, Inc. bears the name of the renowned author Horatio Alger, Jr., whose tales of overcoming adversity through unyielding perseverance and basic moral principles captivated the public in the late 19th century. The Association, a 501(c) (3) nonprofit educational organization, was established in 1947 to dispel the mounting belief among the nation’s youth that the American Dream was no longer attainable.
