The Hispanic Alliance of Atlantic County awarded a $2,000 scholarship to Nayhelie Fermil-Taveras, who won the Miss Hispanic Alliance Scholarship Pageant in May.
During the talent portion of the pageant, the Atlantic City High School senior danced to a medley of merengue, bachatta and modern dance music, popular styles in her native Dominican Republic. But it was during the interview segment that Miss Hispanic Alliance 2010 hit a sweet spot.
Hispanic Alliance President Manny Aponte said the nonprofit organization focuses its philanthropic endeavors on furthering the education and training of young leaders in the Hispanic community. Whether the contestants are headed to a four-year college or a trade school, the alliance awards the money for post-secondary school tuition.
During the interview portion of the pageant, Fermil-Taveras was asked to describe a Hispanic woman whom she felt made an impact on history and describe what she personally learned from the role model.
"I said I consider that Sonia Sotomayor, the Supreme Court judge, has changed history because she showed that with dedication and education, anything is possible," the 17-year-old said. "To me, she showed that education and dedication are the key to whatever I propose to do with my life."
A 4.0 GPA student, Fermil-Taveras said she was inspired by watching a TV presenter on Primer Impacto to pursue a career in journalism. She plans to study communication at Kean University this fall, and she practices her radio-news skills on her high school radio station WAJM-FM 88.9.
A painter from the age of 8, Fermil-Taveras said she also uses dance and writing as creative outlets. She said she loves to read, and she hopes to see her stories and poems published one day.
Aponte said private scholarships such as this one are more important now that state programs such as NJ STARS are offering less financial aid.
"It absolutely makes any independent scholarship more important because it's useful at any institute of higher learning," Aponte said. "The great thing about Nayhelie is, not only did she win the contest, but she was voted Miss Congeniality by her peers. She's a well rounded candidate overall, and she'll do a great job (as Miss Hispanic Alliance.)"
Asked what she thought gave her the advantage, Fermil-Taveras said, "I don't think I was the prettiest or the tallest or the thinnest, and I know I wasn't the best dressed. But maybe it's because I put my whole heart into it and the judges saw it was from my heart. I feel like I embodied a Latina role model in that moment."
Aponte said the Hispanic Alliance seeks to foster leadership and further education within the Hispanic community, but it does no discriminate against non-Hispanics. He said members of Latino heritage strive to find a balance between assimilation in the U.S. and maintaining their national language and customs. The organization also sponsors a weekend youth summit during which children are groomed to be peer leaders in their schools.
For more information go to www.haac.org.
Contact Felicia Compian:
609-272-7209
FCompian@pressofac.com
