2015-2016 Wildflower Fund Recipients

In 2015-16, we distributed $49,000 from the Wildflower Fund (Wildflower Run registrations, corporate sponsorships, and individual donations) in support of education and equity for women and girls. Funds raised were allocated to the following:

High School scholarship recipients helping at the 2016  Wildflower Run

Provide scholarships to high school girls graduating from Morgan Hill Unified School District (MHUSD) schools.

Name High School College Major or Field of Study
Caitlyn Cruise Ann Sobrato High School Ag Services/Education
Dora Jimenez Ann Sobrato High School Computer Engineering
Julia Leal Live Oak High School Stanford University Biology
Shelby McDonald Ann Sobrato High School Education
Tiana Ortiz Central High School Gavilan College Nursing
Lifen Shi Live Oak High School Bio-Engineering
Rhyleigh Thompson Live Oak High School San Jose State  Nursing

Provide “Re-Entry Scholarships” to local women reentering college after a gap in their education.

Name College
Sandina Daly Gavilan College
Melissa Vasquez Gavilan College

NEW: Provide a “Lauren Jenkins Health Care Profession Scholarship” to a Gavilan Community College nursing student.

First Healthcare Profession Scholarship recipient, Jacquelyn Cook, with committee chair Kathleen Sullivan

Name College
Jacquelyn Cook Gavilan College

Provide supplemental Keeping In Touch (KIT) grants to previous scholarship recipients to support them as they continue in their field of study.

Former high school scholarship recipients:

Name College Major or Field of Study
Alejandra Cruz UC Santa Barbara Sociology & Chicano Studies
Mireya Avila UC Santa Cruz Political Science
Whitney Waller CSU Sacramento Psychology
Heather Sjostedt Savannah College of Art & Design Visual Effects & Animation
Diana Fuentes San Jose State Sociology

Former re-entry scholarship recipients:

Anika Mathewson Psychology at Gavilan College, with plans to transfer to CSU MB
Lydia Riojas Business Administration and Accounting at San Jose State

Sponsor a college student from Morgan Hill to participate in NCCWSL (National Conference for College Women Student Leaders).

NCCWSL is an annual national leadership conference for college women. In 2016 we donated the registration fee to AAUW nationally; they used the funds to send a Morgan Hill college student to NCCWSL.

Lydia Riojas San Jose State University

NEW: Provide Community Action Grants to local non-profit organizations for projects whose goals are consistent with AAUW’s mission.

Learning and Loving Education Center QuickBooks software and supplies for immigrant women students
Community Solutions Teatro Vision theater outing for at risk MHUSD students
Friends of the Morgan Hill Library/BookSmart Gift of Reading books for MHUSD elementary school students
Discovery Counseling Center Bold Journey (youth mentoring) for MHUSD elementary school students

Support Girls Engaged in Math and Science (GEMS), a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) after-school enrichment program.

GEMS is sponsored by AAUW Morgan Hill and consists of monthly field trips, lectures, and other programs. GEMS is free and open to all girls in the Morgan Hill Unified School District in grades 8 through 12.

Sponsor a local speech competition as part of Speech Trek, a state-wide AAUW program. First, second, and third place winners each received cash prizes.

Nikhita Gopisetty (1st) Oakwood School
Kelsey Valentine (2nd) Ann Sobrato High School
Lindsey Hillesland (3rd) Live Oak High School

Provide scholarships to send MHUSD Middle School students to Tech Trek, an AAUW-sponsored one week math and science summer camp at Stanford University for middle school girls.

Taylor Conely Martin Murphy Middle School
Danielle Hobbs Martin Murphy Middle School
Cristin Huffman (Alternate #1) Charter School of Morgan Hill
Asia Mathaw Martin Murphy Middle School
Abigail Pina Martin Murphy Middle School
Soraya Reyes Britton Middle School
Madison Reddy (Alternate #2) Jackson Academy of Math & Music
Vanessa Torres Britton Middle School
Allison Webenbauer Britton Middle School

Provide an additional lump sum grant to the Tech Trek camp at Stanford University.

Uses may include extra capital needs such as technology upgrades or additional enrichment such as more field trips.

Sponsor branch participation in the Leadership Morgan Hill class of 2016.

Margaret McCann AAUW Morgan Hill branch member
Kathleen Sullivan AAUW Morgan Hill branch member

Offer a “Lauren Jenkins STEM Workshop” to local high school students.

This workshop was funded through individual donations in memory of AAUW member, geneticist, and GEMS founder Dr. Lauren Jenkins and was offered in collaboration with Anaerobe Systems.

Underwrite national AAUW priorities. These include graduate fellowships for women, community action grants, pioneering research, public policy advocacy, legal advocacy,and leadership programs.

Add to our “Morgan Hill Wildflower Run Research and Projects Grant Endowment.”

This $75,000 endowment was established in 2014, to be funded by proceeds from the Wildflower Run. When completed, the endowment will support community action and career development grants.

Another branch endowment, the $100,000 Blaine/Cate Endowment for Graduate Fellowships (#1802) was completed in 2001. It funds an annual graduate or postgraduate fellowship.

Rachel Pusaten Nelson UC Santa Cruz Ph.D. Visual studies Communicating Conflict, Mediating Dissent: Political Discord in Contemporary Art
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