Five Larkin seniors earn Elgin Hispanic Network scholarships

Five Larkin High School seniors are being honored by the Elgin Hispanic Network.

Javier Samaniego, Alejandro Ramirez, Giselle Aguilera, Julissa Navarro, and Ariana Mattos-Cruz will be awarded scholarships ranging from $1,200 to $2,000 that they can use for college or a trade school.

"All five scholarship recipients represent hope for our Latino community in Elgin," said Maria Borrero, scholarship/award chair for the Elgin Hispanic Network. "They each have amazing life stories and have been faced with many challenges, including living and going to school during a global pandemic. They all have managed to thrive and persevere academically and in their extracurricular activities."

The scholarships are awarded based on academic performance, extracurricular activities, financial need, community involvement, demonstration of bilingualism and biculturalism, and involvement within the Hispanic community.

The program normally awards scholarships annually to three high school seniors from Elgin who are of Hispanic descent. Additional scholarships were funded this year by the Seigle Foundation and the Elgin Human Relations Committee.

The students and their families will be honored Thursday at a dinner at Pastigel Bakery in Elgin.

The nonprofit Elgin Hispanic Network has awarded over $65,000 in scholarships to high school seniors in Elgin since 1992. The charitable organization, founded in 1987, consists of over 70 organizations and nearly 150 individuals with a mission to positively impact the Hispanic community in the greater Elgin area.