Meet the scholars

This scholarship not only has a lot of meaning to me being a first generation college student in my family, but has also impacted me on allowing me to afford one step closer to my dreams of being an ESE teacher!

The Helios First Generation Scholarship has allowed me to continue my education in Interior Design Technology. It has allowed me to take courses such as Building Codes and Systems as well as Introduction to CAD. I am very thankful for the Helios Scholarship and the opportunities it has provided for me.

I am a Nursing major and I plan to pursue a career as a registered nurse upon graduating from Florida State College at Jacksonville. I am grateful for the Helios scholarship because it has alleviated some of my financial burdens, so that I may focus more on my education.

My career goal is to work in law enforcement after receiving a degree in criminal justice. The Helios scholarship has made college possible for me. As a first-generation student, I am well aware of the importance of an education. Without the scholarship I would be facing additional hardships making my journey way more difficult.

I dream of starting my own childcare facility. I have worked with children since I was 16 years old. It has made me a better mother and student. I a, very grateful for the help you all provide with finances. Thank You

Thank you very much for the scholarship fundraising program. Your work is meaningful and important! You act like a bridge from students to the generous donors. So, students can get financial support from them, then they can go further in their education. I am benefit form financial aid and scholarships.

This scholarship has impacted my education because it has made it possible for me to get through my Associates degree little by little. It has helped me worry about one less then, the financial burden that I felt because of this scholarship as been lifted off my shoulders. I wish to become an Elementary teacher.

With my Helios First Generation Scholarship, I was able to complete my A.S. degree in Medical and Office Administration in a little under 2 years. I was able to work part-time while going to school full-time enabling me to focus more on my studies. I am a 45 year old single mother and now able to have a career that will help me better support my family.

The scholarship has given me the opportunity to further my education and accomplish things I have always dreamed of doing. I will forever be grateful for the opportunity I had receiving the Helios First Generation scholarship.

The helios scholarship has allowed me to continue my college education past community college and into a major Florida University. With the help I received from this scholarship I can continue my ambition to get a Bachelor's degree in Communications and eventually get a good paying job and be able to support myself and my family when needed.

Receiving this scholarship has impacted me in so many positive ways. Getting an education is so important to me. I aspire to help many people as a social worker and this scholarship went a long way to helping me achieve that goal. I have had the opportunity to spend more time home with my family and less time and worry about financials.

Thanks to the Helios First Generation Scholars, the burden of College finances and university expenses has been eased on me. One of my biggest worries in College has always been how to pay for the schooling, so this scholarship is greatly appreciated. After College I want to become an Elementary school teacher.

This scholarship has been a big blessing! I am so grateful for it. It has allowed me to increase my focus on my education by largely eliminating financial stress and worries. Money does not buy happiness but it does bring peace of mind. Because of this abundant scholarship, I have been able to pick up less shifts at work and that has been wonderful for my school career.

It is thanks to foundations such as the Helios Education Foundation that I am able to achieve my goals and graduate as an EduGator from the University of Florida. After college, I aspire to become a 4th or 5th grade general education teacher and someday become a Special Education teacher.

As a first-generation student, my main goal has always been to succeed. I want to graduate and live a life that would make my parents proud. This scholarship has helped fund my goals and allowed me to continue my education. With my degree, I aspire to be a successful programmer and help solve problems or at least make someone's life a little easier.

This scholarship has impacted me tremendously and I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to receive this. By receiving this scholarship, it has lightened my financial burden especially during these hard times due to the pandemic. It has also helped me to concentrate on what is more important and that was my education.

This scholarship has allowed me to achieve something that I have dreamt of since I was a young girl; a college degree. Figuring out how to fund this degree was a huge stressor though. I would like to thank Helios for funding my education and opening doors for me to achieve post-secondary success. Upon graduation, I hope to teach students who need my assistance most.

This scholarship made it possible to buy nursing books for school as well as taking away the stress of having to pay for the class. I am currently an LPN in school to be an RN. I graduate this December 2020 and it is all thanks to the Helios first generation scholarship.

When I received the scholarship, I was a pre-med student wanting to gain experience in the work field, and thanks to it, I was able to pay to get certified as a Nurse Assistant. With this, I was able to be on the frontline during the pandemic and helped support my family. I am going to keep studying and working hard to become a doctor and work for non-profits for a better world.

As a first generation immigrant student coming from a low income family, this scholarship has helped me in multiple ways. Since I did not have to worry too much about the financial aspect of college and had more time on other aspects of school like classes, extracurricular and professional development. I have decided that as an electrical engineer.

The Helios Scholarship enabled me to be able to focus on my education rather than my finances. Because of this, I was able to graduate with my Associate of Arts in May of 2020. I have since gone on to pursue a bachelor's degree. Once I complete this program, I will be able to work within programs and schools that serve at-risk preschoolers

I was extremely honored to receive the first generation scholarship. It helped me to complete my education and go on to become a middle school teacher. Because of this scholarship, I was able to move one step closer to achieving my goal and inspiring young students here in Polk county.

Without this scholarship I would not have been able to attend college due to financial complications. I have so thankful to be a part of this community and cannot thank you enough for impacting my educational journey.

This scholarship helps me to pursue my major as soon as I can without fretting the cost of tuition. I want to go into the field as soon as I graduate, but I wouldn’t be able to do that without the aid I get from the Helios scholarship.