AAUW-Humboldt Re-Entry Scholarships for Female Cal Poly Humboldt Students

 

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Women’s Re-Entry Scholarship 2023 Honorees

Julia Cavalli is a Master of Science candidate in Natural Resources (Wildfire Behavior), while also working in community wildfire planning for the County of Humboldt and as the lead coordinator for the Humboldt County Fire Safe Council. Her thesis will focus on strategies for environmentally responsible land management and wildfire risk reduction especially at wildland-urban interfaces. Julia also serves on the Board of the Northcoast Regional Land Trust.

Tina Taylor is a senior majoring in Business Administration, with a current concentration in New Venture Management. She has demonstrated skills as a connector among people from disparate groups, has been a powerful advocate for the survivor community, and is such a poised speaker! Tina has been a passionate voice with the N. CA Tribal Court Coalition, developing creative outreach strategies, and she and her husband run a small service business.

Keana Richmond is working on her Masters in Coral Ecology. She is a climate change warrior, helping organize a major climate change conference during her undergrad years at UC Berkeley, with goals of developing rigorous scientific research to help address threats facing this vital marine species.  She loves teaching and has demonstrated skills communicating scientific concepts to the public.

Michelle Long, a candidate for a Masters in Social Work, is a first generation college graduate
student who understands the challenges that underrepresented students face. She has ten years’ experience working in rural healthcare, and has been an intern with the Cal Poly Humboldt Health Education team, supporting students around food insecurity, soliciting donations to Pop-up thrift  stores, and developing a peer-to-peer support group for parents.

 

Women’s Re-Entry Scholarship 2022 Honorees

Mickelle Ammer: Mickelle is enrolled in Cal Poly Humboldt’s new RN-to-BSN program. Upon graduating from the Associate’s degree nursing program at College of the Redwoods in 2014, she began working at Providence St. Joseph Hospital. She has continued working, now part-time, facing challenges and medical debt from a serious medical condition, and managing care for her two small children. The Selection Committee was impressed by her critical thinking about the changes she wants to see in healthcare and her goal of becoming a nurse educator but especially found her resilience to be inspirational.

 

Ashley Dickinson: Working in the field of rare plant conservation, eleven-year Humboldt County resident Ashley Dickinson is strongly committed to promoting biodiversity and understanding how to protect threatened plants. A Master’s student in Natural Resources, her current research is focused on understanding the risk of extinction of a rare plant, the two-flowered pea, found only in Humboldt County. She has shown great dedication to her work, persisting through incredible logistical challenges and difficulties, disrupting important seasonal study times and plant access. Her community commitment includes volunteer work with the North Coast Chapter of the CA Native Plant Society.

Sarah Leidinger: Sarah is studying for a Master of Science in Geology. She is currently undertaking a very ambitious course schedule while also working a part-time job as a GIS Analyst with an environmental consulting company. The Selection Committee was impressed with how articulate Sarah was, and how she thinks about her future, mapping out how to achieve her long-term goal of becoming a licensed Professional Geologist, a long process that will take many years following the completion of her Master’s. In addition, she eloquently described how she mentored students studying GIS.

Julia Bartley:  Julia is working on her Masters in the Department of Natural Resources with an emphasis on Forest Ecology. Her thesis is in the very important arena of using prescribed fire (controlled burns) as a land management tool. She already has an excellent base in this field, having worked for eight years following her undergraduate studies at land management agencies and organizations including The Nature Conservancy.  Her experiences as frequently one of the few, if only, women on largely male-dominated wildland firefighting crews, have sparked a strong desire to serve as a mentor to help traditionally under-represented students succeed in careers in natural resources.

---

Women’s Re-Entry Scholarship 2021 Honorees

Women’s Re-Entry Scholarship 2020 Honorees

Hannah Bruckner              Janelle Chojnacki.      Yavanna Reynolds
Hannah will receive          Janelle is studying     Yavanna is studying
her Master’s of Social       for a Master’s in        for her multi-subject
Work in 2021.                    Wildlife Science.         teaching credential.

Women’s Re-Entry Scholarship 2019 Honorees

From the left to right are: Allison Lui, Abigail Jones and Beverley Steichen

To be eligible, an applicant must satisfy the following requirements:

• Women residing in Humboldt, Del Norte or Trinity County
• Currently enrolled at Cal Poly Humboldt in upper division or graduate courses
• Return to college after a hiatus of 5 years or more in collegiate education
• Grade point average (GPA) at CPH of at least 3.0 (if available)
• Demonstrate financial needs

Scholarship Range: $1,000-$2,000

Application Process:  Confirm that you meet the requirements above and submit the following:

(1) Re-Entry Scholarship Application: use the link above to access the application and complete the form.  All sections of the application form must be completed.  If an answer for any section has more detail, please use an additional page.

(2) Personal Statement: a one-to-two page statement describing your educational goals, circumstances that have created financial need, how you plan to give back to your community, and how the re-entry scholarship will assist you in achieving your goals.

(3) Two Letters of Recommendation: submitted directly by persons who know you professionally or academically, such as faculty or employers, and not by family members or personal friends.  They should comment on your abilities, achievements, leadership skills, character, personal goals, and how long they have known you.

 The application deadline is usually the beginning of November.

AAUW-Humboldt promotes education and equity for women and girls through a range of programs including these re-entry scholarships.  See the web site for more information:  https://humboldt-ca.aauw.net

 

–