Building Brighter Futures Scholarship Fund

All of our students have a story. We'd like to tell you about one of our students, Maria Garcia, who will be starting the nursing program at Inver Hills in January, 2010. The scholarship that Maria received this year has made all the difference for her and her family. Maria graduated from Stillwater Area High School and started attending Inver Hills after a stint in the Navy. The first in her family to attend college, she chose Inver Hills because of its strong reputation in the healthcare community, and she has maintained a 4.0 GPA in order to secure a spot in the nursing program. She and her husband, who is a Marine veteran, have a young daughter. According to Maria, “The worst case scenario, going back to Iraq, may end up being the only real option for him. While this is hard for him, it also very difficult for me. The stress of keeping our family together is huge, and many times lately I’ve had to be strong enough for our whole little family. I am worried that after I have worked so hard to be accepted into the nursing program at Inver Hills, I will have to quit because I will not be able to afford going to school. The scholarship awarded to me gives us a bit of relief as we struggle from paycheck to paycheck to keep life as normal for our daughter as we can. It gives us a little less to worry about when it comes to paying for school, and the idea of having to quit school only to work at a dead end job does not have to become a reality. Now, I still have the opportunity to accomplish my goal and help my family. I will hopefully be able to give my husband the chance he needs to get the education that he dreams of as well.”