Scholarships – Page 3 – Pueblo High School

Seven Warriors To Play Collegiate Sports

By América Cárdenas and Avae Velasquez

Pueblo Magnet High School hosted the first annual student athlete signing ceremony on Friday, January 15. Seven of our Warriors announced their schools of interest or their choices of where they will be attending college in the fall.

Among these Warriors, only one senior, Vanessa Molina, officially signed. She committed to attending Central Arizona College to play softball.

“The student athletes had the choice of signing at the college, their home, or here at Pueblo,” said Assistant Principal Frank Rosthenhausler. “Vanessa Molina decided to sign here at her high school and wanted to give the opportunity to her fellow student athletes.”

Three of her fellow softball teammates, Vanessa Duarte, Alizea Corday, and Sierra Gaskill, committed to attend Phoenix College and signed the next day, January 16.

“I am extremely proud of the girls’ commitment on and off the field,” said first year high school softball coach Curtis Ruiz. “It makes coaching worth every minute especially when you get to see the players you have had for years finally achieve their dreams of playing ball at the next level.”

Senior Frankie Gomez was also apart of the celebration, and he expressed three schools of interest for baseball. Gomez is still undecided as to where he would like to attend college in the fall.

“I would like to thank God and my family for the amazing opportunities and support they have giving me over the years.” Gomez said. “I still haven’t committed to which college I’ll attend. It’s going to be a difficult decision.”

Jasiah Booth and Justin Pledger have both received offers to play football at the collegiate level.

Booth said that he is also undecided about where he will attend college but has narrowed the choice between Arizona Christian University, Jacksonville University, and three community colleges: Glendale, Mesa, and Scottsdale.

Pledger has the two choices of attending Pima and Eastern College.

Athletic Director and Head Football Coach Brandon Sanders said, “Our student athletes deserve the best. This ceremony was very successful, and I hope this will become an annual event for our Pueblo students.”

TRIO Helps Students With Collegiate Futures

By Xamantha Williams

Among all of the great resources this school has to offer, one of the greatest is Mr. Carlos Gonzales, Jr., who is Pueblo’s Trio Educational Talent Search Program Coordinator.

Trio Carlos Gonzales Pueblo — TRiO Program Coordinator Carlos Gonzales (right) with Iram Arce.

Gonzales is here on campus as a college advisor for Trio students three days out of the school week; he can be found either in the College and Career Center or in the library. TRIO is not an acronym and actually stands for the word “Three”, which represents the three parts of the TRIO program: Upward Bound, Education and Student Support Services. Gonzales said that he specializes in the second program.

Gonzales said, “I definitely like to get to know my students starting from their freshman year up until their senior year because I feel it takes a long time to develop a real relationship with a student.”

He focuses on preparing students for applying for colleges, looking for scholarships, and helping students to choose the best college for them.

One of the many students who appreciate Gonzales is sophomore Iram Arce, who said, “Mr. Gonzales keeps me motivated no matter how challenging things may seem. So far, he has helped me open more doors to my future. I’m so lucky to have such an amazing person who does such an amazing job in this program.”

Seniors, Good Luck On The ACT!

By Felicity Aguilar

This is that time of the year that many seniors start to realize that graduation is only seven months away, and with a new quarter underway, it’s time to start swallowing that reality pill. Many seniors are preparing and planning for a collegiate future, but to do this, they will first have to take the ACT.

Students must achieve a score of 22-36 on the ACT to receive a scholarship in and/or out of state.

TUSD pays for all juniors to take the ACT in April, and there are opportunities to take the ACT retakes throughout the school year. A student has numerous opportunities to obtain their desired score.

“You’re ignorant for not being serious about the test, because even I wasn’t, now I know how important that test was and how it could’ve helped me,” said senior Alejandro Arguellez.

Arguellez came to Pueblo to follow his dream: to play basketball. He has dreams of playing for UCLA and joining the NBA. However, he will first need to take the ACT, which he plans to do tomorrow, Oct. 24.

“I knew that I needed to prepare for the test because I learned a long time ago that not preparing is preparing for failure,” Arguellez said.

Another senior, Kia Guedes, has been studying for the ACT, which she will also take this Saturday, October 24. She plans to score high because she has prepared for this test. For the remainder of this school year, she will maintain her high GPA and continue to work diligently to earn a scholarship to the University of Arizona.

Pueblo Sal Varela Kia Guedes ACT Testing Preparation — Sal Varela and Kia Guedes prepare for ACT Test

“I’m not nervous,” Guedes said. “I’ve taken the pre-ACT, and I’ve been preparing for the real test since the first day of this school year.” She paused and added, “I think that three months of preparing for the ACT is more than enough time. I just need to go in tomorrow and take this test seriously opposed to junior year when I first took it.”

Salvador Varela, a senior who will be graduating with the Class of 2016, is also planning to take the ACT this Saturday. Varela has been preparing since the beginning of the summer and admits that he is a little nervous. His plans are to attend Pima Community College; he then plans to transfer to the U of A.

“I feel pretty confident about this test, because a lot is expected,” said Varela. “It’s nice to know that I can retake this test if I bomb it tomorrow, but I’m feeling fairly confident about this test.”

For more information on taking the ACT, students can see Mr. Ruben Romero in the College and Career Center; you can email him ruben.romero@tusd1.org or contact him at (520) 225-4542.

Warriors Explore Future At Tucson College Night 2015

By América Cárdenas

Once again, Tucson College Night rocks the worlds of our seniors and juniors at Pueblo Magnet High School. An estimated 50 Pueblo students braved the lines and crowds at the Tucson Convention Center on Tuesday, September 29 from 6:30-8:30 p.m., although some seniors noted that they were speaking to college representatives way after 9:00 p.m.

More than 3,000 were in attendance—students and their families from all over Southern Arizona. All of the hard work paid off—work that is done Ms. Holly Colonna and Ms. Beth Counts who work for TUSD’s Guidance and Counseling Departments.

Pueblo Warriors At Tucson College Night 2015 — Class of 2016 Seniors Precious Wall, Sky Blue Estrella, Guadalupe Chacon, Manny Buelena & America Cardenas at Tucson College Night 2015

Sky Blue Estrella, a senior who attended College Night, said, “The event was overwhelmingly filled with high school students and a lot of college recruiters. I really enjoyed talking to some of the out of state colleges, including San Marcos College in California.” He paused and said, “If I have to, I’ll go to Pima, but I think that attending College Night really opened up my eyes and offered me many collegiate options.”

Mr. Ruben Romero, Pueblo’s College and Career coordinator, encouraged all of this year’s seniors to attend the event, and apparently he and senior teachers at Pueblo, made an impact on our students because the TCC parking lot was completely full in a reported 17 minutes!

Another senior who attended, Guadalupe Chacon, a senior, also took full advantage of the numerous colleges.

“It was fun to talk to some of the colleges from far away, including Alabama,” Chacon said. “Realistically, however, we spoke to the recruiters and reps from Arizona State University and the University of New Mexico.”

She paused and added, “This experience was a wake-up call for me and many seniors—especially since we have less than eight months [until graduation].”

College Night Nearing For Class Of 2016 Seniors

By Kenya Acosta

The excitement is brewing as the 42nd Annual Tucson College Night to be held on Tuesday, Sept. 29, is just two weeks away, and this event promises to open doors for several thousand seniors across the Tucson metro area.

More than 200 colleges and universities will be presenting and showcasing their unique college opportunities as well as their information. Among the list of schools attending this year are Arizona State University, Grand Canyon University, Northern Arizona University and Cornell College.

Last year, an estimated 100 seniors from Pueblo High School attended this event. Erik Gutierrez who took part of the event last year, said, “This event was very helpful, and I was able to learn a lot of different things from different colleges.”

A scholarship raffle will entice students to participate in this event which will be taking place at the Tucson Convention Center Exhibition Hall from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

All seniors are encouraged to attend and discover the many options they have available to them. Indeed, College Night will be a night of adventure for all seniors as they take a peek into their futures.

Warriors ‘Invade’ College Fair

By Isaac Montiel

The Tucson College Fair took place on the evening of Tuesday, Sept. 30 at the Tucson Convention Center, and several thousand Southern Arizona high school students—mostly seniors—took advantage of the more than 200 colleges present to answer questions about their schools.

Mr. Ruben Romero, Pueblo’s College and Career counselor, said, “It’s always important for students to make a face-to-face contact when meeting a college representative. Students always have great information about dozens of colleges at these fairs. The more options students have, the more prepared they will be for post-high school life.”

Principal Dr. Augustine Romero said, “It is really important for our students—especially our seniors—to attend the College Fair because they need to be prepared for the next level after high school.”

Besides all of the Arizona colleges and universities in attendance, many out of state colleges also had informational booths available for students.

Pueblo senior Gelsey Grijalva, one of the estimated more than 50 Pueblo seniors who attended the Tucson College Fair, said, “There were so many colleges there—it almost was overwhelming! But, there are colleges for everybody out there.” She paused and said, “I’m still not sure of where I’m attending college, but at least I know there are opportunities out there for me and the rest of my peers who might also be undecided about their futures.”

She paused and said, “I felt confident when I left the fair—it was like a wake-up call for me being a senior because now I realize how quickly this year is flying by. Up until now, I’ve been in denial about being a senior. The College Fair was definitely a slap in the face—like, ‘Wake up, Gelsey!’

Another Pueblo senior, Gabriela Gastelum, who attended the College Fair, said, “I was able to get information about a few schools—from a few film and art schools in New York City. I really want to major in broadcast journalism or anything associated with journalism. I’m so ready for the real world and I’m not afraid of graduating.”