Latinos Unidos Raise Record Scholarship Funding

Students in the Latinos Unidos club at Joliet Junior College recently raised a record amount of funds toward a scholarship benefitting Latinx students. 

Fundraising events started with the club’s very successful bake sale in March and concluded with the 6th annual Dreaming for the Future Scholarship Benefit held on May 11.

“I’m very proud of the hard work and dedication by the student leaders in Latinos Unidos,” said Martha Villegas Miranda, advisor of Latinos Unidos. “The Dreaming for the Future Scholarship Benefit raised $4,250 towards the scholarship- the most ever raised by Latinos Unidos!”

The Dreaming for the Future Scholarship Benefit raises money for the Latinos Unidos Scholarship, which is given to JJC students of Latinx descent who exemplify academic excellence, leadership abilities and civic engagement. This scholarship is also open to undocumented students.

In 2013, Latinos Unidos, with the support of JJC's Committee for African American and Latino Concerns (CAALAC) and other donors was successfully endowed its Latinos Unidos Scholarship with the JJC Foundation. It was the first club-endowed scholarship at JJC.

Latinos Unidos was named 2018 Student Club of the Year by the Office of Student Activities (OSA) and Villegas Miranda was named as OSA’s 2018 Advisor of the Year. The club also received the Reflecting Excellence Award by Reflejos Bilingual Newspaper in 2017.

“We are very grateful for the JJC faculty, staff, students and community members who attended and supported our scholarship fundraiser,” said Villegas Miranda.

The mission of Latinos Unidos, which was established in 1990, is to enrich the college experience of students, faculty and staff by educating others about the Latinx culture.