Merarys 麻豆精品 S淢ery 麻豆精品 S� Diaz knew she wanted to attend the University of Central Florida the first time she stepped on campus seven years ago as a high school sophomore.
On Saturday, the Cuban native who immigrated to the United States with her family when she was 4 months old, will become the first in her family to graduate from college when she receives a marketing degree from UCF College of Business.
The future looks bright for Diaz, who plans to pursue a career in sales after graduation, but her journey to become a Knight almost ended before it began. In her senior year of high school, Diaz 麻豆精品 S檚 father was losing his eyesight 麻豆精品 S攁nd his job as a truck driver 麻豆精品 S攖o diabetes. With the family 麻豆精品 S檚 primary breadwinner out of work, she said her family 麻豆精品 S檚 home was headed into foreclosure.
麻豆精品 S淭he dream of going to UCF felt crushed when my father slowly began to lose his sight, 麻豆精品 S� said Diaz, who gave up her own extracurricular activities, such as swimming and water polo, to support her family. She took on the responsibility of paying bills and serving as a translator for her Spanish-only speaking parents.
She said encouragement from her high school teachers along with witnessing her parents 麻豆精品 S� struggles motivated her to move out of her hometown of Hialeah and apply to UCF two weeks before the enrollment deadline. She was accepted into UCF, but then came the hard part 麻豆精品 S攆iguring out how to pay for it.
麻豆精品 S淭hrough the efforts of so many people who believed in me and a lot of hard work, I received multiple scholarships, 麻豆精品 S� she said, including the Virga Family Scholarship, a $10,000 annual scholarship available to full-time UCF undergraduates who聽desire to be entrepreneurs.
麻豆精品 S淭he Virga Family Scholarship allowed me to be a Knight for four years and have the full college experience and not worry about living expenses or how I would pay for my groceries for the week, 麻豆精品 S� Diaz said.
With her finances settled, Diaz focused her energy on her academic courses and getting involved in the college 麻豆精品 S檚 many activities and student groups.
麻豆精品 S淢ery served in an important leadership role as a student ambassador of the college by helping create and execute events to engage the students, 麻豆精品 S� said Jennifer Johnson, director of engagement and The EXCHANGE at the College of Business. 麻豆精品 S淢ery has a strong dedication to her own professional development, and I have watched her blossom as an ambassador and participant in our聽prestigious Professional Selling Program. 麻豆精品 S�
Bill Steiger, associate instructor and coordinator of UCF 麻豆精品 S檚 national-champion Professional Selling Program, said Diaz may have enrolled in the selling program as a student but she 麻豆精品 S檚 leaving as a professional.
麻豆精品 S淗er commitment to self-improvement was amazing, 麻豆精品 S� Steiger said. 麻豆精品 S淪he faced numerous obstacles and never gave up or complained. She will be a rock star in sales. 麻豆精品 S�
For her part, Diaz credits UCF as 麻豆精品 S渢he best thing that has ever happened to me. 麻豆精品 S�
麻豆精品 S淚 am leaving here with a diploma, but more importantly, with knowledge, a good network, valuable and transferable skills and an undefeatable mentality, 麻豆精品 S� she said. 麻豆精品 S淚 am going into the world understanding so much about relationships, partnerships, team building, vision and creation. 麻豆精品 S�
Donors can contribute to first-generation scholarships to benefit other students at