Bear Tuesday 2018: Benefit a Fellow Bear

“Being a Cumbres scholar, without a doubt, has been one of the most rewarding, unforgettable, and positive experiences of my life,” says Nancy Wendirad ’05. “我选择支持 Cumbres because this wonderful scholarship program did so much for me.”

And that’s what #BearTuesday is all about! This annual day of giving is your opportunity to support a campus cause 那是贴近你的心的. For Nancy Wendirad, that cause is the Cumbres Teacher Preparation Program.

“I know in my heart that Cumbres gave me confidence, peace of mind, as well as monetary and emotional support to pursue my dream, to get my college degree and become a teacher. As an individual, I strongly believe in paying it forward. 作为导师和 giving a monetary contribution to Cumbres is my way of thanking this awesome organization,” 说Wendirad.

Cumbres is a unique co-curricular program that supports education majors who are committed to completing an endorsement in ESL (English as a Second Language) and serving 学生 in K-12 schools whose first language is not English. 

“Cumbres played a vital role during my collegiate experience at UNC,” says Iris Fernandez ’14. “Working closely with peers that had similar backgrounds and career goals was 非常令人鼓舞. For many of us, Cumbres became a support group.”

“Cumbres provides a sense of belonging,” Program 协调员 Penny Mascarenas says. “We really want 学生 to feel like they’re wanted here, they belong here, and they 可以做自己. We have lifelong friendships that developed here, as well as 学生 who ran a high risk of leaving school if they didn’t have these support systems in 的地方.”

The program offers 奖学金 of $750/semester to eligible 学生 while also providing valuable support through a learning and living community that focuses on leadership 和指导.

“$750 doesn’t sound like much, but when you multiply it over 8 or 9 semesters it’s a pretty good chunk of money,” Mascarenas says.

Currently, 54% of the participants in Cumbres identify as Latino/a, and 59% are first-generation 学生. In Fall 2017 the Cumbres program welcomed 41 new members, the largest cohort in the history of the Cumbres program. 

“In Fall 2018 we actually hit our cap to distribute 奖学金, so we had to close the application a little sooner than we normally would have, because we just ran out of money,” Mascarenas says.

That’s why your support is critical now, more than ever. 

“Everything that we raise privately goes directly to 奖学金. 我们所有的操作 costs or any outside costs come from the university. Literally everything we raise privately goes right back to the 学生,” Mascarenas says.

“Without the support of generous donors, we would not be able to offer an incentive to recruit and train future ESL teachers to enter their careers with confidence and competence,” says Aldo Romero, Director of Cumbres. “With your support on Bear Tuesday, we can provide even more opportunities to enable future educators to nurture their passion and graduate with the skills required to serve all 学生." 

All donations directed to Cumbres on #BearTuesday will fund 奖学金 so that Cumbres 学生 can continue their studies at UNC and prepare to be compassionate and qualified teacher candidates who are ready and able to teach linguistically and culturally diverse 学生 throughout Colorado and beyond.