Testimonials

Nearly 500 students have graduated or are currently involved in the Community Scholars Program. Here are just a few testimonials from some of the outstanding students that have been named Community Scholars.

Phi Nguyen

Being a Community Scholar has opened several doors for me throughout the four years that I have been at TCU. Beginning with Bridging the Gap freshman year and now on my way to graduation, I was provided with a constant resource through the encouragement to partake in numerous professional workshops and events in and around campus, which kept me highly involved and successful at TCU. As a Community Scholar, you become part of a family and given a home away from home; from pains and sufferings to joy and celebrations, you always have someone to go to. The friendships that I have made and the things I have achieved with the guidance from this program are ones that I’ll remember forever.

 

Hector Munoz

I’ve said it time and time again, the Community Scholars Program has been the launching pad to my success. I am forever grateful for the many Blessings I have received and have continued to receive from the program. This program has not only changed my life, but has changed the life of my children, and my children’s children. The generation curse of limiting our full potential has been broken and we now accept our seat at the victor’s table.

A message to all the upcoming Community Scholars:  “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” – Luke 12:53

Community Scholars, we have been given much and have been entrusted with much more. Use this gift to help maximize your potential and to influence the people around you and the next generations to come. Strive to obtain the servant’s heart and make a difference in the community that help shaped you. We hold a high responsibility, but understand that our creator doesn’t give us anything we can’t handle.

Onward, to greater and better things…

 

Bianka Soria

My name is Bianka Soria and I am a graduate of TCU class of 2007. While at TCU I was a member of the TCU Community Scholars Program. The program provided the academic and social support that I needed to be successful in college. I majored in Biology and completed the Pre-Medical requirements for acceptance into medical school. I was able to graduate at the top of my class and was accepted to my top choice medical school. I am very grateful for the opportunity this scholarship gave me to attend a great university and receive a superb undergraduate education that prepared me for the rigorous medical school curriculum.

 

Cristina Ramos

The Community Scholars program gave me the opportunity to expand my horizons in ways that I never thought imaginable at that time in my life. They saw in me a desire to learn and gave me the opportunities to pursue so many different avenues. Yes, the scholarship made it feasible to attend a private, prestigious University like TCU. What a gift in and of itself. It did so much more than this. It gave me a group of peers and mentors who were with me every step of the challenging road to graduation. It also gave me the financial opportunity and positive encouragement to study abroad. Travel and learning about new cultures being a passion of mine, I actually took this opportunity twice while at TCU. I was able to study Geology in Edinburgh, Scotland and Spanish in Seville, Spain. I came in with quite a few credits as a Freshman at TCU which gave me the option of double majoring in the four years that I was there. At the last minute, I decided that real world experience was more important than a double major so I dropped my second major and decided to intern in DC through the Political Science program at TCU. When I went to my mentors to inquire about this, they not only supported the idea but encouraged me to continue exploring. What scholarship program allows a student the many opportunities that Community Scholars gave me? Instead of limiting me, my mentors gave me the space to spread my wings while nurturing me in a safe environment. Without the Community Scholars experience, I would not be who I am nor where I am today and for that I am forever grateful to Community Scholars.

 

Terence L. Kennedy, M.Ed.

I am forever grateful to TCU and the Community Scholars program for helping me become the man that I am today. While I was a good student at North Side High School and aimed to attend college, TCU identified me as a student with the potential to be great and afforded the space to pursue that greatness. To be part of a program staffed by people that saw things in me that I could not was invaluable. As a first-generation college student, I only had a vague idea of what college would be like and why it was important. In my mind, you went to college to receive training to land a job while having some fun along the way. Given TCU’s academic reputation, I knew that I would be pushed to perform like never before in the classroom. What I was not expecting was how much I would be pushed to grow as a person. From community service to cultural experiences and leadership development, I was provided opportunities to learn about life outside of my neighborhood and my place in it. While TCU’s overall mission is to teach individuals to think and act as ethical leaders and responsible citizens, I do not believe that I could have achieved those goals without the support and guidance provided by the Community Scholars program. Because of my experience as a Community Scholar, TCU is not just a school that I attended. TCU is the place where I grew up. The mission statement is more than just words. It is a statement that guides the way that I engage the world around me. Community Scholars is not just a scholarship program. It is my extended family.