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Nereyda ('15) recently self-published their first book, Sidewalk Daydreams. The book is a meditation on Luna's trans feminine experience through poetry, prose, and photography.

"This radically narcissistic zine implores you to question the ways you may have been indoctrinated into white supremacist logics, while also bringing you into a trans femme's imagination," Luna shared. "This zine welcomes you to the liminal space trans feminine people reside in between life & death, destruction & creation!"

2014 Hammie, Kenneth Brown, Jr. is pursuing a Master's in Higher Education and Student Affairs at Indiana University. During his program, he will also serve as a Graduate Supervisor for Diversity Education working on diversity initiatives in IU's Residential Life Department.

This program is consistently ranked one of the top student affairs programs in the nation, and we could not be more proud of Kenneth for his passion and dedication to equity in education!

"College was a transformative time for me. I know it is and can be for thousands of students out there. I want to be a part of that," Brown said. "The field is undergoing a shift with new modes of learning, asking themselves how can we better serve students in the future. I want to be a part of that. I want to help and pour into others the same way folks have poured into me."

2013 Hammie, Lona Nguyen, is pursuing their Master's Degree in Education Policy and Social Analysis at Teachers College, Columbia University.

"I’ve been able to reach out to anyone I’ve meet in the program as both a scholar and a former employee in order to get help and advice for my future plans," Nguyen said. "I never thought Ivy League was ever a possibility, but George has helped push me for over a year now to reach above and give me advice on how to push through and put my strengths forward. Bre, Lynell, Mikala, George, and Alexandra Woods are just the more recent members that have helped me personally through conversation, resume, and application assistance and they couldn’t be more helpful!"

2013 Hammie and former AHS Marketing & Volunteer Manger, Bre Legan, attends graduate school this fall at Marquette University in Mikwaukee, WI.

Legan joins a cohort of 12 servant leaders from across the country as part of the fully-funded Trinity Fellows Program, as they pursue a Master's of Arts in Communication with a focus on social justice and advocacy.

Their fellowship matched them with Agricycle Global, a Milwaukee-based organization that they'll be working with over the next two years; Agricycle's vision is eliminating extreme rural poverty through intentional, low-barrier technologies that empower communities.

2019 scholar, Bukola Rinola, is interning this summer as an Emerge Scholar at Oak Street Health! Bukola works with clinics and internal partners to address items needed for OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) compliance.

"I can’t wait to be a part of the wonderful team this summer," Rinola said. "This is only the beginning to my public health journey and experience in helping improve patient and health care workers' health and safety."

2012 scholar, Vincent Garcia, was featured in an employee spotlight earlier in the year during #AustismAcceptanceMonth with Warner Media.

"Living with autism contributed to who I am today," Garcia said. "I developed resilience at an early age by improving my learning strategy to excel in school, practice communication skills when doing extracurriculars, and be comfortable solving problems on my own."

Read more of his conversation.

Shine a spotlight

Have exciting news to share? Did you hear about a fellow Hammie's amazing accomplishment? We want to celebrate you! Fill out the spotlight form on our website so we can share the news to our entire community!

Thank you for truly Supporting Scholars Through Community during our Virtual Auction & Fundraiser in June. Your participation in the auction and Raise the Paddle donations helped us raise $262,988! We're looking forward to meeting in-person next summer and cannot wait to see you there!

Your generosity ensures Hamilton Scholars are able to continue receiving leadership and financial literacy training, mentorship, counseling, support with college scholarships and financial aid navigation, internship opportunities, conference calls, accessibility during Virtual Leader Weeks this summer, and direct emergency funding for scholars in crisis due to COVID-19.