Paying her scholarship forward: From beneficiary to benefactor

When Alexis landed on her feet as a programmer at Google, supporting women of color is exactly what she decided to do with her “extra” income. Her method of choice? Providing a full CSF Leadership 1000 Scholarship to a talented student. What makes her story unique is that Alexis herself is a College Success Foundation alum who received a Leadership 1000 Scholarship while attending the University of Washington back in 2006. Coming from a single parent home, Alexis knew that getting herself through college would be up to her. She felt very lucky when she learned she had been awarded a CSF scholarship. Now she’s in a position to bring others along with her like Mt. Vernon High School student Xitlalit. 

I really wanted to support other women in tech, especially women of color.

– Alexis

In pursuit of a brighter future

Xitlalit is the second of five daughters. Her hard-working parents didn’t graduate from high school, let alone college. Still, Xitlalit’s parents encouraged their daughters to pursue education as the path to a brighter future. A high school advisor suggested Xitlalit participate in extracurricular activities to help her with college applications and scholarships. She took that advice to the extreme, learning along the way how much she enjoyed exploring new experiences.  

“I went a little crazy,” Xitlalit says, “volunteering five days a week at a different location each day all within walking distance of the high school because my parents didn’t have a car.”  

She also joined almost every club she could find. She applied to more than 30 scholarships, knowing her family could not help her with college expenses. Her diligence paid off as she was awarded several scholarships. 

Scholarships gave me more flexibility. The Leadership 1000 Scholarship was my first ‘YES!’ I knew when I got that ‘yes’, college would be possible.

– Xitlalit

CSF’s Leadership 1000 Scholarship matches students with donors who fund an entire scholarship of up to $5,000 per year for each student, as well as the provision of extra funds for services and supports many college students need to be successful. Scholarships of this size are essential in opening the doors for students from low-income backgrounds to participate in internships, live on campus, join clubs and be more selective in accepting jobs that align with their career goals. 

Persistence pays off

“I still feel very lucky,” says Alexis. But at the time, the scholarship did not include money for support services, which Alexis now believes are critical for students. She admits she floundered a bit on such a big campus. Not feeling connected to professors or advisors and not really knowing anything about career services, she only applied to internships during her last two years because she says a few friends insisted she should. For Alexis, securing an internship at Google took her college degree that much further. 

Xitlalit graduated in 2021 with a BS in Materials Science & Engineering and now works at Boeing as a Paint & Chemical Support Engineer. Who knew there was such a career path?  But her start in college wasn’t exactly smooth sailing once she received the scholarship.  

While in college, Xitlalit still had to prove herself – over and over again. She was accepted into a STARS engineering program at the UW, but was denied admittance to her top two majors in the engineering field (mechanical and aerospace). She never gave up though; her extra-curricular mindset and time spent doing projects and internships at Boeing proved she had the skills to be successful. She was finally accepted into the Materials Science & Engineering program.

“The ultimate end goal was to get to a place where I could give back to my parents,” Xitlalit explains.  

She believed choosing a career in engineering would allow her that privilege. With her sights set high, Xitlalit applied to every possible scholarship, internship and apprenticeship relevant to her pursuit. During high school she “accidentally applied” to a Washington Aerospace Scholars online program where the students who scored above a specific level were invited to the Museum of Flight for a weeklong stay, which included an engineering competition with representatives from companies like Boeing, Aerojet Rocketdyne and NASA. That’s where she solidified her desire to pursue an aerospace engineering career. 

The scholarship allowed Xitlalit to continue her pattern of exploring all kinds of opportunities throughout college. She enjoyed volunteering at research labs that had no connection to her major and taking on various internships. This accumulation of experiences set her up well during her interviews later on, giving her a rich variety of topics to talk about. 

“I extracted teeth from alligator heads for no reason other than I could,” Xitlalit says. 

Empowering women in STEM

Both Xitlalit and Alexis are presently thriving in their careers. Alexis loves her job at Google and plans to stay for the foreseeable future. Xitlalit is considering another degree while at Boeing (in communications) to perhaps explore recruiting or STEM outreach. Longer term, she may decide to return to NASA where she enjoyed a final internship during her last year of college.  

Now that Xitlalit has graduated and is well on her way, Alexis has begun supporting a second student through the Leadership 1000 program. The ripple effects of higher education continue to be felt through both women’s journeys. Alexis has a younger sister who is attending Gonzaga University on a partial scholarship and when Xitlalit visits home, her mother encourages her to convince their friend’s children to go to college. 

“I’m really glad to see that Xitlalit is so confident now”, says Alexis. She wants other young professional women to know that they can have a big impact too.

I feel very strongly that supporting one person in a big way can make a bigger difference overall.

– Alexis

Galvanizing when students need it most

Even before the pandemic, too few of Washington’s young people, particularly young people of color and those from low-income backgrounds, were enrolling in postsecondary education and completing credentials. Now things are much worse with the enrollment of Pell-eligible first-year students at four-year institutions down a staggering 21.5% over the last two years. 

By providing both financial assistance and ongoing support during college, the CSF Leadership 1000 Scholarship is working to improve postsecondary outcomes – one student and one donor at a time. For more information about becoming a scholarship donor, please contact Asa Irwin, Senior Philanthropy Officer at Asa.Irwin@collegesuccessfoundation.org or 425-679-5573.