Ten local students each recently received $2,000 in scholarship money — half coming from matching funds from local colleges and half from Mano A Mano, the United Corpus Christi Chamber of Commerce’s annual education program.
Recipients received their money at a ceremony in the chamber offices Aug. 2.
This year, scholarship funds were awarded to Larry Medrano, Sasha Alcorta, Joseph Martinez, Karina Bustos, Christian Toren, Mariah Cerrantes, Kameryn Garrett, Artemio Anguiano, Tamier Jackson and Samantha Lopez.
Mano A Mano began in 2002 as a partnership between the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and Flint Hills Resources. It remained part of the fundraising mix when the Hispanic and Corpus Christi chambers merged two years ago.
The United Corpus Christi Chamber of Commerce Foundation supports Mano A Mano along with Leadership Corpus Christi, Lemonade Day Coastal Band, Conquer the Coast and Mi Casa Es Su Casa.
The program is aimed at training and building the local workforce by encouraging students in the Coastal Bend to pursue post-secondary education for technical careers and maintain employment in Corpus Christi.
The funds are available to seniors in high school, students who have graduated or hold a GED certificate or students currently enrolled in accredited post-secondary schools in Corpus Christi. The awards are given to full-time students who show a willingness to seek employment in the Corpus Christi area after graduating.
“Students will be selected based on their commitment to achieve a targeted career field and to stay in the Corpus Christi area as a productive worker and citizen,” reads the background material on the program’s website. “This program will help fill the needs of keeping students in educational and training settings and to fill vacancies in our local industries.”
Another goal is to increase involvement of the business community in the school system.
More than $700,000 has been awarded to 300 students over the past 15 years of the program. Matching funds come from Texas A&M Universities in both Kingsville and Corpus Christi, and Del Mar College.
Students receive Mano A Mano scholarships
Some of the 10 students who received scholarship funds from the United Corpus Christi Chamber of Commerce’s Mano A Mano program. The awards were handed out at an event Aug. 2 in the chamber’s uptown offices. Courtesy photo