这是25岁的梅勒妮裴瑞兹
梅勒妮裴瑞兹, 25岁, whose long record of service to others in need extends to 电子游戏软件’s Pine Manor Institute for Student Success, 被授予2024年圣奥斯卡A. 罗梅罗奖学金.
裴瑞兹, 布朗克斯的本地人, NY, 谁在攻读传播学学士学位, 辅修一般商业, was presented with the award by University President William P. 莱希,年代.J.在一年一度的圣奥斯卡颁奖典礼上. 罗梅罗奖学金 Banquet on March 23 in the Yawkey Athletic Center Murray Room.
罗梅罗奖学金 winner Melanie Parades at the presentation event with her mother, Ana.
She will receive approximately 75 percent of her senior year tuition in acknowledgement of her superior academic achievement, 课外的领导, 社区服务, and involvement with the Hispanic/Latinx community and issues both on and off campus.
帕雷德斯和其他决赛选手, 三年级学生卡罗尔·贝多亚和雅各布·博吉托, were selected from a record-setting 23 applicants for the scholarship.
Information Technology Services Human Resources Assistant Director Marcela V. 诺顿, 罗梅罗奖学金委员会的联合主席, characterized 裴瑞兹 as “an outstanding individual whose hard work, passion and dedication demonstrates the commitment of service and values of Saint Oscar Romero.”
“I’m deeply honored and profoundly humbled to stand before you tonight as the recipient of the prestigious Oscar 罗梅罗奖学金,”帕雷德斯说。, 是丽贝卡·米切尔介绍的, associate director for curriculum and assessment at the Pine Manor Institute. 帕雷德斯在PMI担任成功教练, building relationships with and supporting high school students and peers in academic and personal development through the institute’s programming.
“This moment is not just a personal triumph but a testament to the collective efforts of all of those who have supported me throughout my journey,”她说。, 她称赞了母亲安娜的“奉献和牺牲”, 也为我接受教育铺平了道路. Her resilience, perseverance, and selflessness have been a cornerstone in my life. I’m eternally grateful, but I also understand that I’ll never have enough to repay her.”
年轻时, 裴瑞兹 took an interest in real estate law after witnessing the mistreatment of Latinos in the shelter and public housing system. 她是南布朗克斯社区的有力倡导者, she developed a passion for interpreting real estate contracts and documentation for her mother and other Latino families who needed help navigating the New York City housing system.
作为大学大使的创始人, 家长在帮助低收入者方面发挥了关键作用, first-generation high school students in navigating the complex college application process. She was awarded a Frontier Fellowship Grant designed to uplift the Latinx community, empowering her to delve into Latin American perspectives on textured hair and Black features, a topic closely tied to her identity as a Dominican American student; she plays an active role in BC’s Dominican Association.
她也是Start: Empowerment的资助接受者, an organization that conducts investigations into the impact of homelessness on the educational achievement of children raised by single mothers. Her initiatives included spearheading a food drive to alleviate the financial burdens faced by single mothers experiencing homelessness.
牧师. John Dinneen服务奖得主Migdalia Iris Nalls ' 01, J.D. ’04 congratulated the 罗梅罗奖学金 finalists and thanked them “for being role models for my children.”
裴瑞兹, 谁在读法律预科, spoke about the fight for equal education and affordable housing access in the Latino community, 称其为“一场超越几代人的战斗”, 这是一场回响着前人呼声的斗争, 以及那些追随他的人. We must stand in solidarity and continue to fight for the rights of the marginalized and voiceless among us.
“这段旅程可能很长, 但这是一段值得尝试的旅程, 我很感激自己开创了这个事业.”
Migdalia Iris Nalls ' 01, J.D. 周六晚上，牧师也为04年颁奖. 约翰一. Dinneen指出,遍布年代.J., 西班牙裔校友社区服务奖, which recognizes a BC alumnus of Latin American descent whose work and service reflects both Archbishop Romero’s ideals, 和已故的Fr. Dinneen’s commitment, leadership, and service to the Latino community.
“谢谢你为我的孩子们树立了榜样,纳尔斯说。, 向罗梅罗奖学金决赛选手致辞. “你的故事引起了我的共鸣. 请保持对社区的热情.”
Raised in Roxbury and Dorchester, Nalls was the first in her family to graduate from college. She is currently the chief of the Juvenile Unit in the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office, 她在哪里监督违法者, 年轻的罪犯, 以及高等法院涉及12至18岁青少年的案件. She was previously a trial attorney for Suffolk County’s Youth Advocacy Division of the Committee for Public Counsel Services, defending young people charged with delinquent and criminal charges. She has also served as an attorney for the South Coastal Counties Legal Services Inc., representing low-income victims of domestic violence with family law cases and child custody and abuse cases.
Among her honors, Nalls has been the recipient of the Brian J. Honan Award for Community Service and Courtroom Excellence in the Suffolk County D.A.’s Office; the District Attorney’s Role Model Award; and the MassHousing Agent of Change Award for her commitment to youth. She is an active board member and former president of the Massachusetts Association of Hispanic Attorneys and an executive board member of the Mass Mentorship Partnership organization. In 2017, she founded and now co-chairs the annual Juvenile Justice Youth Symposium to engage and educate young people about the juvenile justice system.