Jaimie Armenta, Terri Cintron, Samantha Brown, Lena Wilson and Maria Flores all have a lot in common. All five of them are re-entry students at Cerritos College, all have surmounted incredible obstacles, and each of them are recent recipients of 2002 Artesia-Cerritos Woman’s Club Scholarships. Each woman was awarded $500 to put toward her education.

Many factors led Armenta to return to school to pursue a B.A. in Business. After she was laid off from a previous job and had a hard time finding suitable employment, she enrolled in Cerritos College where she is now a full-time student. She hopes to transfer from Cerritos to California State University Fullerton, and to eventually become a parole officer. Armenta also cares for her terminally ill father, and volunteers with a school band.

Cintron is the proud mother of three children, and has been attending Cerritos College since 1999. She plans to earn an A.A. degree in Computer Information Systems, and hopes to be employed by the County of Los Angeles. Cintron is committed to her educational goals and to making a better life for herself and her children.

Brown is a single mother of two who works and goes to school full-time. She hopes to transfer to a four-year university or to a private business school to obtain a B.A. is Business Economics. She credits her children with motivating her to go back to school so she can provide a better life for them. She acknowledges that life isn’t easy right now, but believes it will all pay off in the end.

Wilson is the proud mother of four sons, the oldest of which just graduated from Washington State University with his doctoral degree. But Wilson hasn’t always had the love and appreciation of her family. A former drug addict of 15 years, Wilson has now been clean since 1999. She attributes her success to her close walk with God. She enrolled at Cerritos College to major in Sociology and English, and hopes to one day work with at-risk youth in the inner city. Wilson hopes to transfer to Washington State University.

Flores is the single mother of four children, the oldest of whom attends San Diego State University. She is presently employed by the Little Lake School District in Santa Fe Springs as a substitute instructional aide. She hopes that returning to school will help her achieve her goal of becoming a pre-school teacher. Having been a victim of domestic violence, Maria has become a member of two support groups who help her to understand the negative affects of domestic violence and alcoholism on children. She desires to help students not only with academics, but also with coping with coming from troubled homes.

Cerritos College, and the Cerritos College Foundation who established the scholarship program, congratulate each of these women and wish them luck in their academic endeavors.